A surprisingly successful summer has led to unprecedented heights for Xander Schauffele in the latest installment of the Official World Golf Rankings.
Schauffele capped a breakthrough rookie season with a victory at the Tour Championship, holding off Justin Thomas to win his second tournament in the last three months. As a result, Schauffele jumped from No. 66 to a career high of 32nd in the world – moving him past the likes of major champs Jason Dufner, Webb Simpson and Zach Johnson.
It’s a remarkable ascent for the 23-year-old, who was 352nd in the world before a T-5 finish at the U.S. Open in June sparked a torrid close to his season that also included his maiden win at The Greenbrier Classic.
Russel Henley jumped seven spots to No. 44 after his T-3 finish, while the same result helped Kevin Kisner move up two spots to No. 24. After tying for seventh in his East Lake debut, Tony Finau rose four spots to No. 49 to crack the OWGR top 50 for the first time.
While his FedExCup win yielded a $10 million check, Justin Thomas didn’t make any OWGR progress and remains at No. 4 for another week. In fact, the only change amid the top 10 came from Rory McIlroy, who jumped two spots to No. 6 without hitting a shot.
Dustin Johnson is world No. 1 for another week, followed by Jordan Spieth, Hideki Matsuyama, Thomas and Jon Rahm. McIlroy is the new No. 6 after vaulting past Jason Day and Rickie Fowler, with Henrik Stenson and Sergio Garcia rounding out the top 10.
Idle since February after undergoing back surgery, Tiger Woods fell six more spots to No. 1142 in the latest rankings.
Source: Internet
