LIV Golf Riyadh became the first event in the Saudi league to receive Official World Golf Ranking points. The league has finally secured the ranking points for the 2026 season. However, only the top 10 finishers on the leaderboard will earn points.
The tournament was held from February 5 to 8, with Elvis Smylie registering a win in the event. He jumped from 133rd in the OWGR to 77th place. Jon Rahm settled in second place in the tournament, and he jumped from 93rd to 67th in the rankings.
Below are the number of positions the LIV golfers jumped in the OWGR after the Riyadh event:
- 1. Elvis Smylie: 133 to 77
- 2. Jon Rahm: 93 to 67
- 3. Peter Uihlein: 199 to 154
- T4. Abraham Ancer: 616 to 449
- T4. Thomas Pieters: 564 to 419
- T4. David Puig: 95 to 87
- 7. Thomas Detry: 62 to 63
- 8. Sebastian Munoz: 767 to 566
- T9. Lucas Herbert: 257 to 223
- T9. Branden Grace: 463 to 401
- T9. Ben An: 111 to 107
Notably, LIV Golf has changed its format from 54-hole stroke play to 72-hole stroke play for the new season.
Elvis Smylie had recently joined LIV Golf ahead of the start of the new season. He made a fabulous debut in the league, winning the season-opening event. Jon Rahm was also in contention to win last week; however, he missed the title by one stroke. Peter Uihlein settled in third place, followed by Abraham Ancer, who tied for fourth place with Thomas Pieters and David Puig.
Elvis Smylie opens up about his win at the LIV Golf Riyadh event
Elvis Smylie kick-started his game at the 2026 LIV Golf Riyadh event with an opening round of 66. He then carded the next three rounds of 69, 65, and 64. He opened up about his win in the post-round press conference.
“It’s a dream come true,” Smylie said (via ASAP Sports). “I really didn’t know what to expect this week. Playing at night is obviously a whole different ballgame out here. I wanted to come out here and make a statement. I wanted to prove that I’m one of the best out here, and I feel like I’ve done that, and it’s only up from here.”
Notably, before joining LIV Golf, Smylie played on the DP World Tour. He competed at the Hero Dubai Desert Classic, where he carded rounds of 78 and 73. However, he missed the cut.
In the 2025–26 DP World Tour season, he also played at the BMW Australian PGA Championship and was tied for 19th place. He then played at the Crown Australian Open and carded four rounds of 65, 72, 69, and 69, tying for eighth place.
