Recent Success, Wins, or Overall Ability
As of the writing of this article Dustin Johnson is the current #1. A couple weeks ago it was Justin Rose, but he fell to second place without even playing because of how the PGA point system works. By the way Dustin Johnson didn’t play either, and became the world #1. Rory McIlroy deserves to be in the conversation as well. In 2019 he has been in contention to win every event he has entered. Both Rose and Johnson have a win this year but Rory has a 2nd place finish, two 4th place finishes, and finished top 10 in every other event he has entered. So which one of these Players would you put your money on in the next big event?
The Players Championship
It’s the final day of the Players Championship and last Wednesday I checked the Bet 365 website to see what the Group Golf bets looked like. In Group A they had Dustin Johnson, Justin Rose, Rory McIlroy, and Justin Thomas. Most would consider these four golfers to be the Top 4 golfers in the world right now. Most people wouldn’t consider placing a bet on any of them because to win your Player must finish higher than the other three. So once again I’ll ask you, who would you pick?
I didn’t hesitate and selected Rory McIlroy immediately. In my opinion he is the true #1 Player in the world right now. I will take Recent Success over Wins, or Overall Ability every time. The fact of the matter is that he hasn’t missed a cut, or even had a bad Round of golf this year. Dustin Johnson is currently ranked number 1 because of his achievements more than a year ago. He’s an amazing player but what he did in 2017 has very little bearing on what I expect from him this week. Rose has already won this year but he also looked mediocre last week at the Arnold Palmer Invitational. Thomas can go on a tear at any moment, but they call it gambling for a reason. Nothing is certain, especially in golf, but I trust players that are playing well NOW.
Did I choose correctly?
Well that remains to be seen. Beginning the final day of the Players Championship Rory McIlroy is 4 strokes ahead of Dustin Johnson, 6 strokes ahead of Justin Rose, and 11 strokes ahead of Justin Thomas. Sounds like the celebration can begin but this is golf, and it is The Players Championship. Any fan of the game can tell you that when it comes to TPC Sawgrass, winners and losers can be decided on the 17th hole. That famous island green where one ball in the water can spell disaster. Lets just hope that isn’t Rory McIlroy’s fate.
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