Jon Rahm returns to No. 1 in Official World Golf Ranking after win in Los Angeles
Jon Rahm has returned to No. 1 in the Official World Golf Ranking. Already in the top spot in the Golfweek/Sagarin rankings, Rahm reaffirmed his status as the best player in the world with his win at the Genesis Invitational in Los Angeles last Sunday, the third title he's claimed in 2023 and his fifth in his last nine worldwide starts.
In those nine starts he also has a second, a third, a fourth, a seventh and an eighth-place finish. He now has 10 career PGA Tour wins, five of them coming in California.
Now with $44,888,792 in career earnings, Rahm is 15th on the PGA Tour's all-time money list.
Jon Rahm has returned to No. 1 in the Official World Golf Ranking. Already in the top spot in the Golfweek/Sagarin rankings, Rahm reaffirmed his status as the best player in the world with his win at the Genesis Invitational in Los Angeles on Sunday, the third title he's claimed in 2023 and his fifth in his last nine worldwide starts.
In those nine tournaments he also has a second, a third, a fourth, a seventh and an eighth-place finish. He now has 10 career PGA Tour wins, five of them coming in California.
Now with $44,888,792 in career earnings, the former Arizona State star is 15th on the PGA Tour's all-time money list.
Rahm has also taken the top spot in the FedEx Cup Standings.
Langer can make senior tour history in Tucson
Bernhard Langer will have a chance at history next week.
Langer, who won the Chubb Classic in Naples, Florida, last week, now has 45 career PGA Tour Champions wins. He can break the mark long held by Hale Irwin at the Cologuard Classic in Tucson, March 3-5.
That is likely to be a mark that will stay in the history books for a long time.
Third all-time on the Champions tour wins list is Lee Trevino with 29. He's followed by Bob Charles and Gil Morgan (25), Miller Barber (24), Don January, Gary Player and Chi Chi Rodriguez (22), Jim Colbert and Bruce Crampton (20), George Archer and Larry Nelson (19), Bruce Fleisher, Jay Haas and Mike Hill (18), Fred Couples, Raymond Floyd, Dave Stockton and Tom Watson (14).
Haas, who is 69, and Couples, 63, are the only players on that list still active. Haas is 27 wins back, Couples is 31.
Daly to play for first time since knee replacement
John Daly was granted a sponsor exemption for the Cologuard Classic.
His last appearance was when he teamed up with his son, John Daly II, to finish second at the PNC Championship in December. The duo won the event the previous year. Daly had a full knee replacement surgery on Dec. 21 and has been rehabbing since.
This will mark his sixth appearance in the event at Tucson National, his fourth on a sponsor exemption (2019, 2020, 2022). His best finish in Tucson is a tie for ninth at the 2020 tournament. Last year, he finished tied for 66th.
Tournament Chairman JV Nyman has also announced that fan favorite and defending champion Miguel Angel Jimenez will return to Tucson, along with 2018 tournament champion Steve Stricker, University of Arizona alum Jim Furyk, Ernie Els, Cologuard ambassador Jerry Kelly, 2015 winner Marco Dawson, 2016 champ Woody Austin, 2017 winner Tom Lehman, 2019 winner Mark O’Meara and 2021 tournament champ Kevin Sutherland.
There will two first-timers in the event: Champions tour rookies Justin Leonard and Notah Begay III.
Arizona qualifying for U.S. Women's Open
Gainey Ranch Golf Club in Scottsdale is one of 23 locations announced by the U.S. Golf Association as a qualifying site for the 2023 U.S. Women's Open, which will be held for the first time at historic Pebble Beach Golf Links.
The venue has hosted 14 previous USGA championships.
Canada, Japan and Belgium will host international qualifying events.
The online entry application, which opened Feb. 15, will stay open through May 3 at 3 p.m. Arizona time. Go to champs.usga.org for more information.
Golf has big Arizona economic impact
The Arizona Alliance for Golf has released a study estimating that the golf industry in Arizona generated $6 billion in economic activity in 2021.
The same study also states that Arizona's golf courses used just two percent of daily statewide water. The study says there were 16.6 million rounds of golf played in Arizona in 2021.
"The positive impact to our community provided by the golf industry is good for everyone, even for those who don’t play," Joe Foley, Arizona Golf Association Executive Director and Arizona Alliance for Golf (AAG) executive committee member, said in a statement. "It's one of the most impactful ways we give back, with many community-support organizations hosting their own golf fundraisers every year, as well as direct support from events like the WM Phoenix Open. And using 2 percent of the state's water in the process plainly shows that the golf industry efficiently manages the vital resources we all depend on."
Arizona college rankings
Arizona State men's golf checks in at No. 4 in the latest Golfweek/Sagarin rankings. Vanderbilt is in the No. 1 spot, followed by Auburn and North Carolina with Stanford checking in at No. 5 and Arizona No. 19. Grand Canyon is No. 115. ASU freshman Luke Potter is the highest-ranked Sun Devil at No. 10. ... On the women's side, ASU is No. 10 and Arizona is No. 14. Defending national champion Stanford is No. 1. Grand Canyon is No. 114, NAU is No. 126. Ashley Menne is ASU's highest-ranked individual at No. 29.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Jon Rahm returns to No. 1 in Official World Golf Ranking after LA win
