Which would you rather have, major wins or a No. 1 ranking?
Lee Westwood has been No. 1 for a few weeks now, and the big knock on him every time is that he's won exactly as many majors as you have. But according to a recent interview, that fact bothers him not at all:
"People confuse being world No. 1 with winning a major championship," Westwood said. "But winning a major doesn't make you the best player in the world. No, being the best player in the world is all about consistency -- just look at the world rankings. I have way more points than anyone else. And if you look at the number of tournaments, you'll see I have played five, six, seven tournaments LESS than most other people -- and yet I'm still world No. 1."
Yeah, he's got a point, but consistency doesn't quite match up to the cachet of a major championship win. Trevor Immelman, Mike Weir and Zach Johnson are good if undistinguished golfers, but no matter where they go for the rest of their days, they'll be introduced as Masters champions. Ian Woosnam, Ben Curtis, Rich Beem, Shaun Micheel -- all these guys have something that Lee Westwood, the No. 1 golfer in the world, doesn't.
Now, at the other end of the spectrum, you have Rory McIlroy, who said on Twitter that he'd rather have six majors than nine Order of Merit/Race to Dubai championships. He'd be willing to toss a Ryder Cup over the side for a major win, too.
How about you? Assuming you could reach the top ranking in golf -- and if you can, give us a call; we'll sponsor ya -- would you trade it for a major? Heck, what WOULD you do to win a major?
