• Garcia enters top 10, Schwartzel takes over as SA’s best

    Sergio Garcia wins a Major
    Garcia finally got the big one

    Sergio Garcia, buoyed by his first Major victory, has re-entered the top 10 on the official world rankings, with South Africa’s Charl Schwartzel moving into the top 20.

    Read: Garcia ends Major hoodoo

    Garcia was followed in the top 10 by the man he beat on a dramatic final day at Augusta National. The Spaniard now ranks as the seventh best golfer, with Justin Rose one behind in eighth place following his strong showing at The Masters.

    Garcia, the 37-year-old now one-time Major winner, lost his place inside the top ten on 26 March, but is set to remain among the world’s best after his stellar performance in the year’s first Major. The moves of Garcia and Rose saw Adam Scott and Alex Noren shift to 11th and 12th place.

    Rory McIlroy remains world number one, Dustin Johnson’s closest rival, after the Northern Irishman added yet another top 10 Major finish to his list of honours.

    Also read: Schwartzel’s bumper payday at Augusta

    There was a big change at the top of the South African rankings following The Masters as Charl Schwartzel unseated Branden Grace from the top spot.

    Schwartzel’s magnificent final round 68 moved him up to third for the tournament and saw his ranking jump from 29 to 18. Grace never got going at Augusta, and dropped two places to 22 in the world.

    Louis Oosthuizen remains South Africa’s third best-ranked player, but fell two spots to 30th after a poor showing. Thomas Aiken remains the country’s 10th highest ranked player.

    Top 10 South African rankings:

    Charl Schwartzel – 18

    Branden Grace – 22

    Louis Oosthuizen – 30

    Brandon Stone – 76

    Richard Sterne – 89

    Dean Burmester – 95

    Jaco Van Zyl – 102

    Dylan Fritelli – 139

    George Coetzee – 149

    Thomas Aiken – 154

    Full OWGR rankings

     

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