How long was Scottie Scheffler away from the World No. 1 spot?

Scottie Scheffler
Scottie Scheffler (Image via USA Today Sports)

Scottie Scheffler regained the world's No. 1 title after four months on Sunday, February 12. The American golfer moved up to second place in October last year when Rory McIlroy topped the world rankings.

Scheffler once again led the world rankings after registering a two-shot victory over Nick Taylor at the 2023 WM Phoenix Open on Sunday.

The New Jersey native had an amazing career year in 2022 when he started with a win at the Phoenix Open. He then went on to win three more PGA Tour events, including the Masters, that helped him reach No. 1 in the world rankings.

With his victory at the 2023 WM Phoenix Open, Scottie Scheffler became the seventh player to defend the title. He first became world No. 1 in April 2022 after winning the Masters. He held the title for 30 weeks before losing it to McIlroy in October.

McIlroy is now ranked second in the world, followed by Jon Rahm. The fourth position is secured by Cameron Smith, while Patrick Catlay is fifth.

McIlroy also competed at the 2023 WM Phoenix Open, but could not defeat Scottie Scheffler and ended up in a seven-way tie at T32.

Jon Rahm is also having the best days of his career. He has won two consecutive tournaments on the PGA Tour and finished in the top 10 in the next two tournaments he played this year.

Rahm has also gained points in the world rankings and touched $40 million in career earnings.

Scottie Scheffler played in the Sentry Tournament of Champions. He finished in seventh position before competing at the American Express to finish in 11th position.

McIlroy missed both tournaments and started the calendar year while playing in the Dubai Dessert Classic. He won the tournament and maintained his lead in the official world rankings. However, his performance at the Phoenix Open took away his No. 1 title.

Will Zalatoris, who was on hiatus for a few months in 2022, is ranked No. 8, while Collin Morikawa is ninth, followed by Matt Fitzpatrick.


Current Official World Golf Rankings

  • 1. Scottie Scheffler
  • 2. Rory McIlroy
  • 3. Jon Rahm
  • 4. Cameron Smith
  • 5. Patrick Cantlay
  • 6. Xander Schauffele
  • 7. Justin Thomas
  • 8. Will Zalatoris
  • 9. Collin Morikawa
  • 10. Matt Fitzpatrick
  • 11. Victor Hovland
  • 12. Max Homa
  • 13. Tony Finau
  • 14. Sam Burns
  • 15. Tom Kim
  • 16. Jordan Spieth
  • 17. Cameron Young
  • 18. Sungjae Im
  • 19. Billy Horschel
  • 20. Hideki Matsuyama
  • 21. Keegan Bradley
  • 22. Shane Lowry
  • 23. Joaquin Niemann
  • 24. Tyrrell Hatton
  • 25. Brian Harman
  • 26. Tommy Fleetwood
  • 27. Abraham Ancer
  • 28. Seamus Power
  • 29. Ryan Fox
  • 30. Sepp Straka
  • 31. Tom Hoge
  • 32. Russell Henley
  • 33. Sahith Theegala
  • 34. Thomas Pieters
  • 35. Adam Scott
  • 36. Justin Rose
  • 37. Corey Conners
  • 38. Kevin Kisner
  • 39. Kyoung Hoon Lee
  • 40. Aaron Wise
  • 41. Alex Horen
  • 42. Si Woo Kim
  • 43. Talor Gooch
  • 44. Kurt Kutayama
  • 45. Lucas Herbert
  • 46. Guillermo Mito Pereira
  • 47. Min Woo Lee
  • 48. Chris Kirk
  • 49. Harold Varner II
  • 50. JT Poston

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