The historic comeback, the defeat of two of the European Tour’s premier players, even the paycheck paled in comparison to the impact on his ranking that Sunday’s win had for Gary Stal.
The 22-year-old Frenchman leapt 254 spots in the latest Official World Golf Rankings from No. 357 to No. 103 with his dramatic win at the HSBC Abu Dhabi.
The PGA Tour weekly winner – Jimmy Walker – climbed four spots to No. 13, his career high ranking. Walker won the Sony Open in Hawaii by a hopping nine strokes, the largest margin of victory at a PGA event since 2009.
The lone change in the Top 10 saw Justin Rose surpass Sergio Garcia and take over No. 5.
The idle Tiger Woods dropped five spots to No. 43 in the world. Woods is expected to debut this year at the Waste Management Phoenix Open on Jan. 29.
The Top 10 as of 18 January 2015
1. Rory McIlroy, Northern Ireland, 11.1890
2. Henrik Stenson, Sweden, 7.7359
3. Adam Scott, Australia, 7.2545
4. Bubba Watson, US, 7.1130
5. Justin Rose, UK, 6.4095
6. Sergio Garcia, Spain, 6.3560
7. Jim Furyk, US, 6.2787
8. Jason Day, Australia, 5.6017
9. Jordan Spieth, US, 5.5139
10. Rickie Fowler, US, 5.2270
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