Rory McIlroy will return to the summit of the World Golf Rankings when he tees off at the Genesis Open in California next week.
The Irishman will leapfrog Brooks Koepka and end a five-year wait to return to the number one spot despite neither being in action this week.
With both Koepka and McIlroy skipping the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-AM, along with world number three Jon Rahm, the vagaries of the world ranking system mean that McIlroy will edge past Koepka by three-hundredths of a ranking point this week.
McIlroy last sat in top spot back in September 2015 and since then no fewer that six other players have held that position.
Elsewhere Shane Lowry, who was tied for 13th place at the Saudi International, has moved two places up to number 16 in the world, which is his highest ever ranking in professional golf.
Also on the move is Graeme McDowell who re-enters the top 50 at number 47 following his triumph at the Saudi International.
McDowell's victory and return to the top 50 offers a major boost to his Ryder Cup aspirations and should see him receive invitations to the upcoming World Golf Championship events in Mexico and Texas, the Players Championship next month and the Masters in April.
