The concept of the Ranking originated in the early 1980s by Mark H McCormack and Tony Greer. The SONY RANKING, owned and managed by IMG, launched on Sunday, April 6th, 1986. After McCormack's death in 2003, a new Private Limited Company by guarantee was formed: Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR).
MISSION
The mission of the OWGR is to administer and publish, on a weekly basis, a transparent, credible, and accurate Ranking based on the relative performances of players participating in male Eligible Golf Tours worldwide.
The OWGR is governed by seven board of directors (the Governing Board), supported by the Operations Committee composed of representatives from the Governing Bodies, Major Championships and leading tours from within men's professional golf.
Support for the governance of OWGR and the operation of the Official World Golf Ranking and the OWGR System is also provided by specialists in the fields of communications and data analysis via a Communications Committee and a Data Analysis Committee.
GOVERNING BOARD
Independent, non-voting Chairman - Trevor Immelman
Augusta National Golf Club - Will Jones, Executive Director
Participating Eligible Tours - Nick Dastey, General Manager of Tournaments & Global Tour Relationships
PGA European Tour Group - Guy Kinnings, Chief Executive Officer
PGA of America - Kerry Haigh, Chief Championships Officer
PGA Tour - Jay Monahan, Commissioner
The R&A - Mark Darbon, Chief Executive Officer
USGA - Mike Whan, Chief Executive Officer
OPERATIONS COMMITTEE
Chairman - Ian Barker
Secretary - Sasha Forster
Asian Tour - Cho Minn Thant, Commissioner & Chief Executive Officer
Augusta National Golf Club - Steve Ethun, Chief Masters Tournament and Golf Development Officer
PGA European Tour Group - Jordi Garcia Pinto, Head of Competitions Administrations
Japan Golf Tour - Amigo Urayama, General Manager
PGA of America - Kerry Haigh, Chief Championships Officer
PGA Tour of Australasia - Nick Dastey, General Manager of Tournaments & Global Tour Relationships
PGA Tour - Billy Schroder, Senior Vice President, PGA TOUR Competitions
Sunshine Tour - Thomas Abt, Commissioner
The R&A - Professor Steve Otto, Chief Technology Officer
USGA - Jeff Hall, Managing Director, Rules & Open Championships
DATA ANALYTIC SUPPORT PROVIDED BY:
The R&A - Douglas Baillie, Data Manager
COMMUNICATION SUPPORT PROVIDED BY:
Augusta National Golf Club - Steve Ethun, Chief Masters Tournament and Golf Development Officer
The R&A - Mike Woodcock, Director of Communications
PARTICIPATING ELIGIBLE TOURS:
Asian Tour - Cho Minn Thant, Commissioner & Chief Executive Officer
Japan Golf Tour - Amigo Urayama, General Manager
PGA Tour of Australasia - Nick Dastey, General Manager of Tournaments & Global Tour Relationships
Sunshine Tour - Thomas Abt, Commissioner
