Scheffler widens gap with McIlroy to 2.94 points after CJ Cup win
Schauffele, Morikawa, and Thomas hold steady at third to fifth
Im Sungjae ranks 19th, An Byeonghun 39th, Kim Joohyung 41st
Scottie Scheffler (USA) has further solidified his position as the world number one.
Scottie Scheffler is smiling brightly holding the trophy immediately after winning the CJ Cup Byron Nelson. McKinney, USA - AP Yonhap News Photo by AP
On May 5 (local time), Scheffler maintained his top spot in the men's weekly golf world rankings with a score of 14.4996 points. He widened the gap with world number two Rory McIlroy (Northern Ireland) from 2.4152 points last week to 2.9354 points. Scheffler earned points by claiming a dominant eight-stroke victory (31-under-par 253) at the CJ Cup Byron Nelson (total prize money of $9.9 million), held at TPC Craig Ranch (par 71) in McKinney, near Dallas, Texas. This tied the PGA Tour record for the lowest 72-hole score. By adding this victory, Scheffler now has 14 career wins, capturing his first trophy in eight months since last year's Tour Championship.
In an interview immediately after his win, Scheffler said, "This is a truly special victory. This tournament means a lot to me. I grew up watching this event," adding, "Winning here is really special. I can't describe the feeling of winning in my hometown, in front of my hometown fans." Receiving the winner's trophy engraved with his name in Korean, Scheffler smiled and said, "The trophy is really cool. I'm proud to have my name on it. I think I need to learn some Korean from Siwoo Kim so I can read my (Korean) name."
Xander Schauffele is ranked third, Collin Morikawa fourth, and Justin Thomas fifth (all USA). Among Korean players, Im Sungjae is 19th, An Byeonghun 39th, Kim Joohyung 41st, and Kim Siwoo is 66th. Moon Doyeob, who won the domestic GS Caltex Maekyung Open, jumped 304 spots from 717th last week to 413th.
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