…A year makes?  Not really.  Below are both this week’s top 10 in the OWR and the top 10 from exactly one year ago, and a quick glance indicates that five players from last year’s elite group remain.  As one might reasonably assume that a healthy Dustin Johnson (currently 19th) would have held his spot, and that an unscandalized Tiger Woods would have been a mainstay of last year’s top 10, that essentially means that seven of the game’s 10 best remain consistent from a year ago.

November 25, 2012

1    Rory McIlroy     13.61     
2    Luke Donald     9.28      
3    Tiger Woods     8.89     
4    Justin Rose     6.66      
5    Adam Scott     6.50      
6    Lee Westwood     6.39      
7    Louis Oosthuizen     6.35      
8    Jason Dufner     5.74      
9    Webb Simpson     5.61   
10  Brandt Snedeker     5.56     

November 27, 2011

1    Luke Donald     10.22
2    Rory McIlroy     7.48
3    Lee Westwood     7.35
4    Martin Kaymer     6.91   
5    Dustin Johnson     5.69   
6    Steve Stricker     5.69   
7    Adam Scott     6.60   
8    Jason Day     5.41   
9    Webb Simpson     5.18
10  Nick Watney     4.97   

The big losers?  Two of the game’s elite young players, Martin Kaymer and Jason Day.  Kaymer’s run to the World Number One spot seems like ancient history, but he ascended to the top spot in February of 2011, following a runner-up finish at the WGC Match Play.  He would close the year at #4 (buoyed by a late-season win at the WGC HSBC Championship) before beginning a downward spiral in 2012 – though recent top 10s at this year’s WGC HSBC and the South African Open might signal the beginnings of a return to form.  He currently stands 32nd worldwide.  Day, on the other hand, cracked the top 10 for the first time with a runner-up finish at the 2011 U.S. Open, and remained a fixture there through the spring of this year.  He has since fallen to 35th, which is somewhat surprising given that he has logged four PGA Tour top 10s during this period.

The two additional departures?  Steve Stricker (to 14th) and Nick Watney (16th), neither of whom have gone very far.

But the big story within these numbers is......Rory McIlroy, of course.  McIlroy’s jump from 2nd to 1st might not automatically suggest vastly improved play, particularly given Luke Donald’s decline of nearly one full average ranking point earned per event.  But how much better was McIlroy?  His average earned skyrocketed more than six full points per event – which speaks volumes regarding a campaign which included five victories (led by the PGA Championship) and 16 top 10s in 24 starts worldwide.