LIV star Lucas Herbert could jump 150 places on the rankings after a win in Japan

When he moved to LIV, Lucas Herbert gave up world ranking points, but given the chance to earn some and get close to major qualification, he nailed it.

Winning events with world ranking points is the best way for LIV players to get back in the majors and a victory in Japan on the weekend delivered Lucas Herbert a big part of the bump he needs.

The Victorian started the International Series Japan ranked 324th in the world, a dramatic fall from his career high of 40, a mark he hit in 2023, but an expected slide after his move to join Cam Smith’s Ripper GC team.

His win should lift Herbert to 170 in the world, with his intentions to play in other Asian events aiding his rankings cause.

Herbert has declared shifting to LIV has been the best move he’s made for his golf and he sits fifth on the breakaway tour’s individual standings, with both the US and British Opens now offering a spot to the rankings leader not already qualified.

Lucas Herbert celebrates his victory in Japan. Picture: Graham Uden / Asian Tour / AFP

His five-shot win in the $3m event, along with three top-five finishes on LIV this season, is indicative of a player in form but one who also knew what he was signing up for when he made his move while conceding being sidelined for the majors made for some “hard” watching.

Herbert is also holding out hope his form might sway major officials to send an invitation his way.

“When we came to LIV we knew that the majors were going to be the sticking point and it was going to be the hard thing to deal with,” he said,

“But it has been difficult to watch Augusta the last two years and know that I was never going to get there with the way everything is set up at the moment.

“There’s no clear pathway to get to Augusta, so it was tough to watch them knowing I was never going to get there.

“I’ve had chances to qualify for the other majors though, so I can’t get too upset at that. And that was the thing that we knew when we signed up with LIV, that majors would be the issue. They have the right to invite, or not invite, whoever they want.

“Obviously, I’ve been playing great this year and I would have loved to have played, but a big part of why I’ve played so well this year has been being in a team environment with Ripper.

pic.twitter.com/CMP6AvqX00

— Ripper GC (@rippergc_) May 8, 2025

“I don’t think I would have played as well as I have this year had it not have been for LIV, so maybe I wouldn’t have been good enough to qualify for the PGA Championship without LIV anyway. I’m seeing it both ways. It is what it is and there’s some guys on LIV that did get invited and that’s great because there’s some really high quality golf being played on LIV at the top end of leaderboards.”

Herbert said he also felt his win was reward for effort this year.

“I’ve played really well this year, and I think the driver was a big part of this success,” he said

“The way I’ve been playing this year, it’s been building to get a win at some point.

“It’s nice to get it done here, especially in Japan, which is one of my favourite places. It’s nice to feel like some of the hard work that I put in has paid off. Holding that trophy is a pretty good feeling.”

Originally published as LIV star Lucas Herbert could jump 150 places on the rankings after a win in Japan