McIlroy "Returning to World No.1 Next Week"... What About Woods?

[Asia Economy Kim Hyun-jun, Golf Specialist Reporter] Rory McIlroy (Northern Ireland, photo) will return to world No. 1 next week.

On the 5th (Korean time), the US Golf Channel reported, "McIlroy will push Brooks Koepka aside and become 'Number 1' on the 10th." Currently, McIlroy has 9.16 points and Koepka 9.35 points, a difference of 0.19 points. However, one week later, McIlroy will lead by 0.30 points. Neither player will participate in the PGA Tour AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am (total prize money $7.8 million), which opens on the night of the 6th at Pebble Beach Golf Links (par 72, 6,816 yards) in California, USA.

This means McIlroy has accumulated more recent points. The Official World Golf Ranking awards points differentially every Monday after professional golf tours worldwide conclude. The average is calculated by dividing the points earned over two years by the number of tournaments played (minimum 40, maximum 52). This average rating is the basis for the world ranking. Points vary depending on the tour, tournament scale, and the status of participating players.

Koepka held the No. 1 spot for 38 weeks after winning his second major PGA Championship in May last year but has not shown significant results since, including missing the cut at the Shriners after knee surgery in October and withdrawing from The CJ Cup held in Korea. Meanwhile, McIlroy has been on the rise, winning the World Golf Championships (WGC) HSBC Champions included in the 2020 season in November, followed by the Zozo Championship and a tie for 3rd place at last month's Farmers Insurance Open.

It is interesting that McIlroy has already held the No. 1 position for 95 weeks over seven separate periods. In the history of global golf, Tiger Woods (USA), the 'Returned Golf Emperor,' ranks first with 683 weeks, Greg Norman (Australia) second with 331 weeks, and Nick Faldo (England) third with 97 weeks. Adding just two more weeks would tie McIlroy with Faldo for third place. The 'Number 1 competition' has become a key point of interest for the time being. Besides Koepka, third-ranked Jon Rahm (Spain), fourth-ranked Justin Thomas, fifth-ranked Dustin Johnson, and sixth-ranked Woods (all USA) are within reach.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.