Jay Monahan and Keith Pelley declined to review LIV Golf’s application for Official World Golf Ranking points.
Monahan, the commissioner of the PGA Tour, and Pelley, CEO of the DP World Tour, are two of the seven members of the OWGR board of directors who ultimately decide the fate of the aspiring tours.
Keith Waters, head of the International PGA Tour Federation and chief operator of the DP World Tour, also declined to file.
Pelley revealed the decision to reporters ahead of the Hero Dubai Desert Classic, which starts in the United Arab Emirates on Thursday. The PGA Tour confirmed that Monahan had withdrawn from the process.
“I haven’t looked at LIV’s application,” Pelley said during a session with reporters in Dubai. “So I can’t comment on an application that I haven’t seen. It’s in the hands of the technical committee. On the advice of legal counsel, Jay and I have withdrawn from a separate committee. Representatives of the four major companies. Now determine the application of LIV. We have no involvement or influence in what happens as far as LIV.”
Without three board members making a decision, it means four representatives from the major championships would decide. Augusta National and Masters CEO Will Jones. Other representatives include Seth Waugh, CEO of the PGA of America; Mike Whan, CEO, United States Golf Association; and Martin Slumbers, Chief Executive of the R&A.
Peter Dawson, former head of the R&A, is chairman of the OWGR board.
The Technical Committee consists of 12 members representing all four major companies and various tours around the world, including the Asian Tour and CEO Cho Minn Thant. The Asian Tour has a financial arrangement through LIV Golf, funding the International Series, an enlarged group of tournaments on the Asian Tour schedule that offers a place in the LIV Golf League.
Greg Norman, LIV Golf CEO and commissioner, said Monahan and Pelley’s association with OWGR is a conflict of interest given their opposition to the LIV Golf League.
LIV Golf first applied in July. She later submitted another application in partnership with the MENA Tour, a development tour that is already awarded points. A decision on whether to award points for their events is still expected before the first event, Feb. 24-26 in Mayacoba, Mexico.
