From the FedExCup standings to the World Rankings -- there really isn't a perfect way to rank the PGA's best golfers. There is no way Tiger Woods will drop from first on anyones list, but players 2-9 will change regularly. Here is my PGA Power Rankings for the week of February 18.
1. Tiger Woods -- Woods took the past weekend off in preparation for the World Golf Championships where he holds a No. 1 seed for the sixth time in his career. Woods has won the WGC twice and finished tied for ninth the past two years.
2. Phil Mickelson -- Mickelson got over his Pebble Beach fiasco with a win at Riviera. Mickelson was hitting all of his clubs well on his way to his first victory of this early season.
3. K. J. Choi -- Choi ranks slightly ahead of J.B. Holmes for how he started and finished at the Northern Trust Open. Choi took an early lead with a six under 65 Thursday and overcame a front nine of 37 to shoot a back nine 33 on Sunday. Choi has been hanging around the top 20 after winning the Sony Open back in early January; he ranks third in the FedExCup standings.
4. J. B. Holmes -- Like Choi and Mickelson, Holmes has used an early season victory to give him an early boost in the FedExCup standings. Currently second behind only Mickelson, Holmes overcame a first round 74 on his way to a T7 at the Northern Trust Open.
5. Rory Sabbatini -- There is no denying that Sabbatini is a top five golfer. But his T44 at the Northern Trust Open is a far cry from where he's been able to finish in the past (winner, second). Sabbatini will take his 5/5 on cuts-made and his nearly $1 million earned into the World Golf Championships where he will try to improve on his tie for 17th a year ago.
6. Steve Stricker -- 2007's FedExCup darling is already in the top 10 in 2008 -- which is nearly where he found himself last weekend (T11) at Riviera. Stricker's fast start (2nd, T4) this season will keep him in contention all year.
7. Vijay Singh -- Singh ranks just outside teh FedExCup standings top 10 (12th) and his tie for 36th last weekend doesn't help to improve his positioning. The WGC will be a good chance for Singh to gain confiednce.
8. Padraig Harrington -- Paddy followed his tour debut of T14 with a third place finish at the Northern Trust. The British Open champ has his focus on the field of 64 at the Accenture this upcoming weekend.
9. Jim Furyk -- Furyk's rank of 27th on the FedExCup list might be a bit deceiving. A disappointing MC this past weekend left Furyk earning no points. His previous four weeks (three top 25 finishes) are more like what you can expect from Furyk for the rest of the season.
10. Justin Leonard -- It was hard to choose the 10th player on my list when so many players deserve mentioning. Leonard outlasts Chopra, Weir, Quinney, Lowery, Trahan and the rest of the bubble golfers because of his quick start (T8, 2nd, 5th) and current ranking on the FedExCup list (8th).
Others:
Daniel Chopra, Mike Weir, Ryuji Imada, D.J. Trahan, Jeff Quinney, Kevin Na, Anthony Kim, Adam Scott, Luke Donald, Dustin Johnson, Justin Rose, Ernie Els, Sergio Garcia, Zach Johnson, Aaron Baddeley, Henrik Stenson
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