Rory McIlroy has a new opportunity this week to position himself as the World Number One. He is the only player who could dethrone Scottie Scheffler from the position he has held for the last 39 consecutive weeks for a total of 74.
What will the Northern Irishman need? Very simple, and tremendously difficult at the same time. Only winning the Genesis Invitational that started this Thursday and that Scheffler finishes second tied with three players or worse would suffice. That is, if he wins, which is the hardest part, he would have it absolutely within reach.
It should be remembered that McIlroy already had the opportunity to be World Number One at Pebble Beach, although he fell far short because he had a very discreet week. The last time Rory held the world’s top spot was just a year ago. The flamboyant winner of the Dubai Desert Classic has spent 122 weeks as Number One.
Beyond this fight for Number One, this week can produce very significant movements in the world ranking:
– Tiger Woods would rise to 54th place with a victory.
– Ludvig Aberg would move up to 5th place if he won.
– Viktor Hovland would snatch the third place from Jon Rahm with a victory.
