Last week, the LPGA announced changes to the formula used to determine the Rolex Women’s World Rankings. On Monday, those changes had a significant affect on the new order, especially in the case of 16-year-old Michelle Wie, who is considered by many to be the focus of the new formula.
Wie, the women’s No. 2 for most of this season, dropped five places to seventh based on the new formula, which uses a higher divisor than the previous formula.
Because Wie has played in so few tournaments and her small point total is now divisible by a higher number, she has fallen behind full-time tour players like Lorena Ochoa, Karrie Webb, Paula Creamer, Cristie Kerr and Juli Inkster, who have all played in at least 43 events over the ranking period.
Wie has started in just 17 tournaments over the same time period.
Of course, the new ranking system hasn’t affected Annika Sorenstam’s solid place at the top. She leads new No. 2 Lorena Ochoa by almost eight full average points (by comparison, Ochoa leads third-ranked Webb by less than 1/2 point).
After Sorenstam, Ochoa and Webb, the top 10 is rounded out by Creamer, Kerr, Inkster, Wie, Jeong Jang, Yuri Fudoh and Ai Miyazato.
The remainder of the top 20 is filled by Mi Hyun Kim, Hee-Won Han, Se-Rie Pak, Pat Hurst, Shiho Ohyama, Natalie Gulbis, Seon-Hwa Lee, Sakura Yokomine, Sophie Gustafson and Sherri Steinhauer.
Steinhauer wrapped up her third Women’s British Open title on Sunday -- first since it’s been a major -- and jumped 46 places to No. 20 in the rankings as a result.
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