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Rory McIlroy is just two weeks away from eclipsing one of the game’s all-time greats and further cementing his place as one of the game’s greats.

Four-time major winner McIlroy returned to the top of the Official World Golf Ranking for the first time in four-and-a-half years on Monday.

Assuming he holds on to the No.1 spot for another fortnight, he will overtake Sir Nick Faldo on the list of golfers who’ve spent the most weeks atop the OWGR.

Faldo, who spent 97 weeks as the game’s highest ranked player across four spells in the early nineties, is currently third on that list behind Tiger Woods (683 total weeks) and Greg Norman (331).

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This marks McIlroy’s 96th week at the top of the standings.

The Northern Irishman is in the midst of his eighth spell a world No.1, having first got there in March 2012.

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Current world No.5 Dustin Johnson has spent the next longest amount of time at the top of the pile, with 91 weeks to his name.

McIlror and Johnson are both in the field for this week’s Genesis Invitational at Riviera, where nine of the world’s top-10 will feature. Only world No.7 Webb Simpson is sitting it out.

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Consequently, there are lots of world No.1 scenarios in play.

Brooks Koepka, overtaken by Mcllroy at the start of this week, could reclaim the top spot if but only if he finishes in at least a two-way tie for seventh.

Jon Rahm, meantime, could climb to the top of the standings for the first-ever time with a win, a solo second-place finish or a two-way tie for second.


author headshot

Michael McEwan is the Deputy Editor of bunkered and has been part of the team since 2004. In that time, he has interviewed almost every major figure within the sport, from Jack Nicklaus, to Rory McIlroy, to Donald Trump. The host of the multi award-winning bunkered Podcast and a member of Balfron Golfing Society, Michael is the author of three books and is the 2023 PPA Scotland 'Writer of the Year' and 'Columnist of the Year'. Dislikes white belts, yellow balls and iron headcovers. Likes being drawn out of the media ballot to play Augusta National.

Deputy Editor

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