February 15, 2012

World Ranking Head Scratcher Files: Phil Wins @ Pebble Edition

February 15, 2012/ Geoff Shackelford

Alex Miceli with the latest Official World Golf Ranking absurdity: Phil Mickelson received fewer World Ranking points for winning the full field AT&T National Pro-Am than Tiger Woods received for beating 17 players at last December's Chevron World Challenge.

When Woods beat Zach Johnson by a stroke at the Chevron, which is an unofficial event, he earned 44 world-ranking points and moved from 52nd in the world to 21st in the Official World Golf Ranking.

Mickelson, with his two-shot margin against Charlie Wi at Pebble Beach, earned only 38 points. That also was 10 less than the 48 points that Rafael Cabrera-Bello gained for winning the Omega Dubai Desert Classic and the same amount that Lee Westwood garnered for winning the Nedbank Golf Challenge, a 12-man exhibition event in South Africa in December.

And this is a system we're allowing to determine major championship fields, and in 2016, the Olympic Games field?

Geoff Shackelford

Geoff Shackelford is a Senior Writer for Golfweek magazine, a weekly contributor to Golf Channel's Morning Drive, is co-host of The Ringer's ShackHouse is the author of eleven books.