Graeme McDowell’s first top-10 finish since 2022 saw him rocket over 600 places up the Official World Golf Rankings (OWGR) as he broke back into the top-1000 in the world.
McDowell has risen from 1508 to 900 in the rankings after claiming his first OWGR points since LIV was awarded them last month. The 2010 US Open champion flirted with victory as he finished in a share of 8th place at LIV Hong Kong.
His Smash GC team were also runners-up in the team leaderboard with Jon Rahm and 4Aces taking the spoils.
McDowell, who celebrated his 15th-career hole-in-one on Friday, birdied his final hole of the week – the par-5 third. The Portrush man birdied the seventh, then eagled 13 and birdied 14 to get to four-under for his round, but a bogey on 15 killed his momentum and the birdie on the last came after five consecutive pars.
Still, it’s his highest finish of the season so far and lifts him into the top 20 in the season rankings.
Rahm’s first win in over a year – 539 days to be exact – lifts him from 54th to 36th in the world rankings after the Spaniard won by three shots on 23-under.
“Very relieving,” said Rahm, the league’s reigning two-time Individual Champion. “That’s the only way I can describe it. I’ve been very ecstatic for wins in the past. This one just feels like a big weight off my shoulder. That’s all I can say.
“It’s very fun when you can stand on that podium and celebrate with your teammates,” Rahm said about Legion XIII’s success since his last win. “But as far as obviously being a competitor and as myself goes, I wanted to get this done. It feels different. I think I would be way more ecstatic if I was celebrating with my teammates for the win, like the Aces did today, but there’s a sense of self-accomplishment and pride that goes with doing it myself.”
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