Long established as world number one, Tiger Woods runs the risk of being deposed at the top of the rankings in the first quarter of next year. The American has been out of action since having reconstructive knee surgery after winning the US Open in June and, as a bystander, has watched his stranglehold at the top steadily loosen week by week.
After his astonishing playoff victory at Torrey Pines six months ago, Woods enjoyed a substantial lead of 11.328 ranking points over second-placed American Phil Mickelson. Spaniard Sergio Garcia has since climbed into second spot in the global pecking order and trails Woods by just 3.865 points going into the New Year.
The game's dominant player is unlikely to return to competitive golf until at least late February and his number one status could be usurped by Garcia, world number three Mickelson or fourth-ranked Irishman Padraig Harrington. For Woods to surrender the grip he has held since June 2005, one of his rivals would have to make a fast start to 2009 while also winning at least one of the big tournaments early on. World ranking points are weighted according to the status of the event and strength of the field and the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship in Tucson and the WGC-CA Championship in Miami provide rich reward in the first three months.
Ian Barker of Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) has examined projections of the rankings on a month-by-month basis leading up to the April 9-12 Masters, where Woods is determined to compete. "These projections show how, as time passes, Tiger's position at the top becomes more vulnerable," Barker told Reuters.
"If you look at the March 29 projection, you will see I have input seven events and the number of points that Garcia and Harrington would need to pass Tiger's average on that date." For the moment, however, the 14-times Major winner can reflect on the record total of 529 weeks he has been golf's world number one during his career. He first claimed the top spot on June 15, 1997 and has held the position since regaining it from Fiji's Vijay Singh on June 12, 2005.