Rory McIlroy says the World No. 1 ranking is being passed around like a “hot potato” ahead of playing in this week’s Genesis Invitational on the PGA Tour.
McIlroy, 33, started the year as the world’s best player and reaffirmed his place at the top of rankings with an impressive victory at January’s Hero Dubai Desert Classic.
However, reigning Masters champion Scottie Scheffler overtook the four-time Major winner to regain the top spot himself last week with victory at the Phoenix Open.
“I think it’s a really cool thing to be ranked number one in whatever you do,” said McIlroy. “I think it just goes to show the level of depth and the level of talent that’s out here.
“I literally have one average week, it wasn’t even a bad week, just an average week, and there’s always someone waiting to overtake you or to come and try to take that mantle from you. I think it’s a great thing for the game.
“I’ve got a chance to get it back this week. You know, hopefully it’s a bit of a sort of hot potato thing where me, Scottie and Jon (Rahm) sort of pass it around a little bit because it means we’re all playing great golf.”
Scheffler leads McIlroy by just 0.5 points at the summit of the world rankings, with the winner of this week’s PGA Tour event projected to receive a further 67.6 points.
The Northern Irishman has spent a total of 122 weeks as World No. 1, while Scheffler has held the top spot for 31 weeks combined to date.
