After his second PGA Tour win in less than a year, Pat Perez is officially on the cusp of some elite status in the Official World Golf Ranking.
Perez cruised to a four-shot win at the CIMB Classic just three weeks after a career season netted him his first-ever trip to the Tour Championship. It’s the third win of his career, and it helped the 41-year-old move from No. 31 to No. 20 in the latest rankings.
The ascent marks a new career best for Perez, and it’s a remarkable turnaround in just 12 months. Following surgery to repair a torn labrum, Perez returned from an eight-month layoff at last year’s CIMB Classic ranked No. 350 in the world. He cracked the top 50 with a runner-up finish at the Wells Fargo Championship in May and hasn’t looked back since.
CIMB runner-up Keegan Bradley jumped 34 spots to No. 64 in the latest rankings, while a T-3 finish helped Sung Kang move inside the top 100 at No. 80, a 25-spot improvement. Rookie of the Year Xander Schauffele, who tied for third alongside Kang, moved up another three spots to No. 29 in the world.
Tyrrell Hatton’s second win on the European Tour in as many weeks means the Englishman is up five spots to No. 17. Ross Fisher, who has finished second to Hatton on both occasions, jumped 12 places to No. 33.
There were no changes to the OWGR top 10 this week, as Dustin Johnson remains in the top spot followed by Jordan Spieth, Hideki Matsuyama, Justin Thomas and Jon Rahm. Rory McIlroy sits at No. 6, with Rickie Fowler, Henrik Stenson, Jason Day and Brooks Koepka rounding out the top 10.
Still sidelined after lumbar fusion surgery in April but continuing to post videos of his improving swing, Tiger Woods fell another nine spots to No. 1164 in the latest rankings.
Source: Internet
