The Power 18 golf rankings: Rory McIlroy jumps Jon Rahm into No. 2, inches closer to Scottie Scheffler
After two months, there is already some shake-up inside the top five of the rankings
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8 min read
It's March?! Already? What! The PGA Tour's West Coast Swing has come and gone with historic venues and historic victories checked off the 2026 calendar. Action has moved to the East Coast, where the state of Florida takes center stage with a certain tournament at the beginning of April already on the periphery.
In February, however, some surprise winners finally emerged. Collin Morikawa broke his winless drought at perhaps the most iconic venue on the PGA Tour: Pebble Beach. Jacob Bridgeman followed him up at Riviera the very next week and became the first first-time winner on the PGA Tour this season.
Amidst all this, Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy persisted. The top two players on the PGA Tour did everything but win as McIlroy fell one shy of Bridgeman at the Genesis Invitational and Scheffler continued his slow starts out of the blocks, only to surge his way back to the first pages of leaderboards.
Elsewhere, another league's top two players also fell short as Jon Rahm and Bryson DeChambeau were billed to have a two-man bout down in Australia, only to be upended by … checks notes … Anthony Kim?! You got that right, Anthony Kim. The two two-time major champions shared a five-stroke lead heading into the final round before getting topped by the firecracker that is Kim Down Under.
This shook the golf world given Kim's story, and it certainly shook up this edition of the Power 18 golf rankings, where a new No. 2 has emerged to challenge Scheffler's reign atop the standings.
The Power 18 provides insight as to how golfers are currently performing with benefit given to their play over recent events. It is a wider lens than simply what happened at the last tournament to be played but more narrow than the Official World Golf Rankings, which take into account how more than 2,000 golfers perform across an entire season.
The Power 18
| 1 | |
| The top-10 streak came to an end at Riviera, but no alarms are being sounded. Scheffler remains the clear-cut best player in the world, but there is some things to at least monitor. Despite ranking No. 1 in overall scoring average on the PGA Tour, Scheffler checks in at No. 112 in Round 1 scoring average. He also tops the tour in terms of total strokes gained while ranking 57th in strokes gained approach. There are two ways to look at these with one of them certainly being a scary prospect for his peers. Previous: 1 | |
| 2 | |
| Two starts into his PGA Tour season, and two quality results have materialized for McIlroy. He fell one stroke shy of Bridgeman at Riviera in large part due to a middling putting performance over the weekend, especially on Sunday when he was unable to mount a charge until it was too late. McIlroy is varying shot shapes, trajectories and windows heading into a state that treated him quite nicely a year ago. Previous: 3 | |
| 3 | |
| Any concerns of a slow start based on his January on the DP World Tour have been squashed by his play in February on the PGA Tour. Fleetwood found his form with a T4 at Pebble Beach and backed it up with a T7 at Riviera. Everything is clicking in his game, and a win on a more difficult Florida golf course wouldn't be the least bit surprising. The top 10 checks continue to alleviate any financial stress he may be experiencing with buying pro shop merchandise every week. Previous: 4 | |
| 4 | |
| Just have to bump him a little bit based on the lack of wins. Rahm is without a trophy since September 2024 as the Spaniard finds himself in some sort of purgatory created by the golfing gods. Since that win in Chicago, Rahm has finished runner-up seven times (!) with occurrences Nos. 5 and 6 coming in his first two starts on LIV Golf this year. Iron play seems to be the missing ingredient. Previous: 2 | |
| 5 | |
| The good news is DeChambeau found something with his iron play in Australia. The bad news is that, along with Rahm, he blew a five-stroke lead in the final round. The two-time major champion continues to make headlines off the course, but it has yet to affect his play. Surprisingly, he has just one win on LIV Golf since the end of the 2023 season. For a player of his caliber, one would expect more and should expect more as the league gets going. Previous: 5 | |
| 6 | |
| The early load of the PGA Tour schedule may have gotten to Gotterup across his last two starts in California. After picking off wins at the Sony Open and WM Phoenix Open, the big-hitting American fell flat at Pebble Beach and missed the cut at Riviera. Some short-game shortcomings were to blame as he continues to embark on new venues and a new cadence to his playing calendar. Previous: 6 | |
| 7 | |
| The driver kept him out of the winner's circle at the WM Phoenix Open, but there have been improvements. Matsuyama once again contended at Pebble Beach and put together a solid showing at Riviera, where he served as the golf course defending champion. If he stays on this trajectory, the 34-year-old will continue to play himself in the mix in big-time tournaments. Previous: 8 | |
| 8 | |
| He's bouncing around like a meme stock, but he is close to bursting through the top resistance level. After knocking some rust off the first two tournaments of his year, Schauffele snuck inside the top 20 at Pebble Beach and collected a top 10 at Riviera. The ball striking looks pristine and the confidence is beginning to snowball as he enters the same stretch in which he returned from injury in 2025. Previous: 11 | |
| 9 | |
| Inconsistencies are to be expected from the 45-year-old as he prides himself on getting up for the biggest of challenges. He has lagged a little since his dominating win at the Farmers Insurance Open, but the bones of the operation are still solid. Rose continues to maintain his speed off the tee, and his iron play is sharp as a knife. There's some short-game stuff to clean up. Previous: 7 | |
| 10 | |
| Twice a winner already on the DP World Tour, Reed now embarks on his South Africa adventure. He notched a top 30 finish in his first trip and is scheduled to tee it up again in the Joburg Open for another debut appearance. An underrated aspect of Reed's voyage on the European circuit is the number of new golf courses the American is taking on. Previous: 9 | |
| 11 | |
| Hello there! Morikawa made his way back into the winner's circle with a one-stroke victory over Min Woo Lee at Pebble Beach. He hit all 18 greens in regulation in his third round and put together one of the best ball-striking performances of his career. The two-time major champion followed it up with a top-10 finish at Riviera. The iron play is a welcome sight, but there are still some deficiencies on and around the green. Previous: Not ranked | |
| 12 | |
| Fitzpatrick will be the trendy pick for the Arnold Palmer Invitational and for good reason. He has strung together three straight top 25 finishes on the back of elite iron play. His run of form at Bay Hill is equally as impressive as he has six top 25s in his last seven appearances. His has putted these greens beautifully throughout his career, which should bring confidence considering that was what was missing in California. Previous: 12 | |
| 13 | |
| Since the start of the 2026 season, the player to own the second-best scoring average and rank second in terms of total strokes gained is none other than … you guessed it … Jake Knapp. The one-time PGA Tour winner found a new home on the first page of the leaderboard over the first two months of the season; he has no finish worse than T11 in his five starts. Everything is clicking, and a big win may be coming soon. Previous: NR | |
| 14 | |
| Kim had his chances the first two months of the year to notch another win, but he was unable to parlay his elite tee-to-green prowess with a trip to the winner's circle. He played the first six weeks of the season and took a necessary week off last week to charge up the batteries. If he figures out the putter, he will start contending again despite the tour's move to Florida. Previous: 10 | |
| 15 | |
| Easy to bag on the guy given his shortcomings in contention, but Lowry remains ultra consistent. Before booting away the Cognizant Classic, the Irishman notched a pair of top 25 results with underrated iron play. The last time he was unable to convert his 54-hole lead at PGA National into a win, he bounced back the next week and shared the lead heading into the final round at Arnie's Place. Previous: NR | |
| 16 | |
| A lot of chatter about Young's year during the offseason, and he finally showed some signs of life. A putt on the 72nd hole at Riviera knocked Scheffler outside the top 10 and secured his first such finish in 2026. Never one to putt exceptionally well on the West Coast, Young should be licking his lips to get back on Bermuda grass, where he has been much more effective throughout his career. Previous: 14 | |
| 17 | |
| Take away his finish at the Sony Open, and MacIntyre has not done much in 2026. The driver appears to be in a solid spot, and he is holing putts with consistency, but the iron play has fallen off drastically. It's early and he just welcomed a child into the world, but that aspect of his game will need to turn the corner if he expects to contend in Florida. Previous: 15 | |
| 18 | |
| The defending champion at Bay Hill, Henley arrives having just missed the cut at Riviera. Early week rains were no friend to Henley, who tends to thrive on firmer and faster golf courses like the Bay Hill that was seen in 2025. The American has three top 20 finishes in four starts as he continues to show off an impressively high floor despite his lack of pop off the tee. Previous: 16 | |
