AUGUSTA, Ga. – Ian Poulter may have broken into the top 50 in the world a week later than he wanted, but his drought-busting victory at the Houston Open returned him to the game’s elite.
After earning his first title since 2012, Poulter jumped from 51st to 29th in the world. It’s his highest position since June 2015.
As recently as last February, he was ranked 207th.
Poulter was just outside the top-50 cutoff to earn a spot in the Masters, but his victory at the Houston Open earned him an automatic spot.
Updated Official World Golf Ranking
Beau Hossler, who lost to Poulter in the playoff, also made a significant rise in the rankings, moving from 213rd to a career-best 88th. It was his third top-10 finish on Tour this season, but his first during the calendar year.
On the Web.com Tour, Sam Burns claimed his first title to continue his significant progress over the past few months. After ending the year at No. 881 in the world, the first-year pro and reigning NCAA Player of the Year is all the way up to 165th.
The top 10 in the world remains unchanged heading into the first men’s major of the year: No. 1 Dustin Johnson, Justin Thomas, Jon Rahm, Jordan Spieth, Justin Rose, Hideki Matsuyama, Rory McIlroy, Rickie Fowler, Sergio Garcia and Brooks Koepka.
Tiger Woods is currently 103rd.
Source: Internet