Will’s Official Weekly Golf Ranking, Vol. 2023.16

This intro section is tough to write sometimes. Occasionally, I just write some words about how hard it is to write to distract you from the fact that I’m not saying anything at all.

Need a recap on the WOWgr rules?

Vol. 2023.16

No. 1 – Rose Zhang (No change from last week) – Our reigning champion won the Pac 12 Championship in decisive fashion this week. Time to go for back-to-back individual and team NCAA Championship titles.

No. 2 – Calling your parents (Up 2) – While it’s not a part of my routine anymore, Pardon My Take used to be the first thing I listened to every Monday/Wednesday/Friday during my commute to a past job. Hearing that PFT Commenter lost his dad this week brought me back to the hours I spent listening to those guys, and I couldn’t help but feel a little bit emotional. Loss is never easy, and it’s always a good idea to call your parents and tell them you love them.

No. 3 – Oil (Up 931) – It’s a bummer that the Dinah Shore is no longer, but I’m cautiously optimistic that the Chevron Championship can have success in Houston. Let’s hope the locals embrace the event and give the first women’s major championship of the year the love it deserves.

No. 5 – Terrible headcovers (Up 721) – Matt Fitzpatrick’s monstrous lighthouse headcover is absurd. I don’t care about the sentimental value. Congrats on the dub, though. Fitzy’s back.

No. 6 – Imposters (Up 530) – I’m convinced this high schooler who qualified for this week’s Korn Ferry Tour event is actually Charles Howell III.

No. 8 – Peer pressure (Up 442) – Usually not a great thing, especially in high school, but I’m a huge fan of Fitzpatrick being very public about his displeasure with slow play in professional golf. Almost makes up for the headcover.

No. 28 – West Palm Beach public golf (Up 621) – The Park, a fantastic new Gil Hanse and Jim Wagner design, opened this week in WPB. The course is maybe 15 minutes from the airport and offers tremendous value in an area littered with expensive private courses. For more on the new course, listen to Andy Johnson’s interview with Jim Wagner on the Fried Egg Podcast.

No. 33 – The Illuminati (Up 220) – Rodeo Dunes, a new Dream Golf project, is set to start construction about 30 minutes from the Denver International Airport. I wonder if there will be a tunnel built directly from the terminal to the clubhouse?

No. 40 – Testing your luck (Up 582) – Maybe I’m just risk averse, but if I just won a major championship, I would not jump into a pond that could have an alligator in it.

No. 53 – Procrastination (Up 843) – Registration for our Fried Egg Event at Soule Park closes today and we have space for one more foursome. Come play some golf next Saturday (4/29)! I’d say that’s worthy of being higher than 53rd but I cannot give procrastinators any credit. As a general rule in life, get your sh*t done early.

No. 88 – The baby who paid extra to yell (Up 531) – Top-10 rant of all time.

No. 763 – Will Knights (Down 700) – I won’t lie to you all, I was feeling myself a bit too much recently. Fresh off my second consecutive correct Masters pick, I was feeling high and mighty for last week’s WOWgr. Then I ranked ‘canons’ instead of ‘cannons’ at the RBC Heritage. My only defense is that spelling was never my strong suit. More of a math guy. Still, there are no excuses and I will be better in the future.

No. 1,431 – Professional team golf (no change) – My feelings on LIV’s team format are well known, but this week’s horrific Zurich Classic field should be the death of this event. The team of Marty Dou and Zac Blair is amazing though. And I’m very much looking forward to the LPGA Tour’s International crown.