For a second consecutive year, Tiger Woods is poised to make a huge jump in the Official World Golf Ranking at the Hero World Challenge -- no matter how he plays.
Woods enters this week at No. 1,199, sandwiched between Nicolas Tacher and George Gandranata. But OWGR guru Nosferatu (Twitter handle @VC606) calculates the 14-time major champ will climb more than 250 spots just for finishing four rounds in the Bahamas. And a win in the limited-field event would propel Woods all the way to approximately No. 135. Check out this chart:
And here's a graph:
Of course, winning doesn't seem likely for Woods, who is returning to competitive golf after undergoing a fourth back surgery in April. Various sportsbooks have listed him as the clear long shot in the 18-man field with BookMaker putting him as low as 45-to-1 odds. In fact, sportsbooks think there's more of a chance that Woods finishes last or withdraws than him finishing in the top five.
Woods was in a similar position last year when he finished 15th out of 17 players at the Hero World Challenge to jump 248 spots (from No. 898 to 650).
Since the Official World Golf Ranking was introduced in 1986, Woods holds the record for most weeks spent at No. 1 overall (683) and consecutively (281). Another trip back to the top spot seems unlikely as he approaches his 42nd birthday next month, but hey, you've got to start somewhere.
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