A new #1?

I like Lee Westwood. He's a great player and by all accounts he's a nice guy. He's had five top 3 finishes in his last eleven majors. He was sidelined at the PGA for a calf injury but came back for the Ryder Cup and played well. I read today that he will more than likely become the #1 player in the world on October 31st.

I'm not sure how I feel about this. Couples and Duval are the only other players to be #1 without having a major championship. Couples won his next major at the '92 Masters. Duval didn't get his major for almost two full years after becoming #1. But Duval was clearly the best player in the world in late '98 and early '99. Duval won two tournaments late in '98 and won four tournaments before the Masters in '99. He was on fire. Is Westwood on fire?

Westwood is essentially going to be #1 in the world due to being in the hunt so much lately. He won at St. Jude earlier this year, but he doesn't have a career defining win. No Players, Memorial, Bay Hill, WGC or any other big event. He lost the 54-hole lead at the Masters and hasn't played for two months before this week. But he will somehow be #1 in the world in a few weeks because he's been in contention lately. I think you need to win big in order to be #1. I hope Lee can justify this ranking or he won't have it long.