European Tour Members Ernie Els and Vijay Singh will have an added incentive going into this week’’s US PGA Championship, namely that, if results go their way, either one can move to Number One on the Official World Golf Ranking.
The South African, who topped the Volvo Order of Merit in 2003, and the Fijian, a winner of 11 European Tour titles, can both dislodge the current occupant Tiger Woods if they perform well enough on the demanding Whistling Straits course in Wisconsin.
For Singh, the current Number Three, the position is relatively clear-cut. The 41 year old will go to Number One should he win the fourth and final Major Championship of 2004, Woods misses the cut and Els is not second on his own.
For Els, currently Number Two, the options are slightly broader and not solely dependant on him winning in Wisconsin. However, should he win, Els will go to Number One if Woods is not second on his own or tied for second with one or two players.
If Els is second on his own, he can still claim the Number One spot on the Rankings, if Woods does not finish higher than in a two-way tie for 16th place.
Finally, if Els is tied second with one other player, he can still go to Number One providing Woods misses the cut and Singh is not the winner. If Singh is the winner, then it will be the Fijian who goes to Number One as described above.
Of course, while the incentives for Els and Singh are huge, it is also the same for Woods who will make history if he can fend off the respective challenges of the South African and the Fijian.
Last week, the 28 year old American equalled Greg Norman’’s total of 331 consecutive weeks at World Number One and therefore, will be looking to set a new record total of 332 weeks if he can hold onto his position on Sunday night.
