Viktor Hovland’s Downfall Becomes Boon for Xander Schauffele Despite Winless Drought

THE PLAYERS Championship victory was a record-breaking feat for Scottie Scheffler, it was a heartbreaking affair for Xander Schauffele. The 30-year-old was on a pedestal to win the fifth major. However, he had to conclude the event tied for the second position with two others. It had been a successful run for Schauffele, as it would have broken his 19-month winless streak.

The La Jolla native, though, didn’t finish as he hoped to. Regardless, his incredible performance has rewarded him big time. Moreover, Schauffele also benefited as Viktor Hovland struggled to find his pace, and, in the end, gave up his jeweled possession.

Xander Schauffele may attain the best rank of his career

Xander Schauffele scored rounds of 65-69-65-70 to finish 19 under 269 and second on the leaderboard. The four-day event at Stadium Course went ahead to award Schauffele $1.98 million with 34.66666 Official World Golf Ranking points. This propelled Schauffele to become the new world number five, as Viktor Hovland finished T62 and was replaced by the 7-time PGA Tour winner.

Although the 30-year-old hasn’t won since 2022, his rank may get better after the end of this week. Nosferatu on X (formerly Twitter) posted OWGR projection for the upcoming week. The tweet relays that the Valspar Championship has been allotted approximately 50.4 or 54.5 points by the world ranking system, so after the event ends, the third-ranked golfer might change; the top two will be untouched.

If Schauffele continues to keep his momentum up at the Valspar Championship with neither the Norwegian golfer nor Jon Rahm amongst the 156 players, the PGA Tour Pro might have a very strong chance of overtaking Rahm for the third spot on the OWGR chart. This would end the Spaniard’s 39-week streak as the world number three. Despite Schauffele’s winless drought, he will earn his best rank on the OWGR.

The leaderboard after the conclusion of the Valspar Championship can change the OWGR for many other golfers as well, given that they perform exceptionally and are positioned better on the scoreboard. It will unlock a new achievement for many, except Jordan Spieth.

Valspar Championship to significantly impact the OWGR 

Other than Xander Schauffele, Jordan Spieth, Keegan Bradley, Sam Burns, Cameron Young, and Brian Harman’s ranks will also be changing after the Valspar Championship. It can be predicted that except for former world number one Spieth, all the other golfers will be reaching their best ranks in their careers.

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Bradley, Spieth, and Burns may get ranked eighth from 15th, 16th, and 19th, respectively. On the other hand, the 2023 Open Championship winner may jump to the seventh rank in the world from eighth and Young, while he is 23rd on OWGR, after week 12 in the 2024 season, may become the world number 10, replacing Max Homa.

The OWGR may dramatically change by next week. Who will unlock their best rank among the pros? Stay tuned to find out.

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