PGA Tour rankings -- April 30, 2012

The Sports Xchange's PGA Tour rankings are selected by TSX Golf Staff, based on play in the 2011 and 2012 seasons, with more emphasis on recent results.

1. Luke Donald, England -- Donald got off to a slow start in the Zurich Classic of New Orleans by opening with a 1-over-par 73, but he followed that with three rounds of 67 or better and rallied for solo third place. That was his third top-10 finish on the PGA Tour this season, including a victory in the Transitions Championship, and it again lifted him past Rory McIlroy and into the No. 1 spot in the World Golf Rankings. ... Donald is going to take a week off ahead of the Players Championship, once again passing on the Wells Fargo Championship, in which he has missed the cut three times in five appearances. Last year at this time, he was in the midst of a string of eight consecutive top-10 finishes on the PGA Tour, starting with a victory in the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship. That carried him to the No. 1 spot in the World Golf Rankings, which he held for 40 consecutive weeks. ... After his poor first round last week at TPC Louisiana, Luke left no doubt about making the cut by posting a bogey-free, 7-under-par 65 in the second round before shooting 66-67 on the weekend to finish two strokes out of the playoff in which Jason Dufner defeated Ernie Els. Donald carded only one bogey over the last 55 holes, on the sixth hole in round three, but it was not quite enough. Donald might have broken par each day, but he hit his tee shot into the water and made a double-bogey 5 on the 17th hole in the first round. For the week, he hit nearly 75 percent of the fairways and greens while averaging 26.8 putts per round.

2. Rory McIlroy, Northern Ireland -- Having taken three weeks off after his weekend to forget at the Masters, it will be interesting to see how McIlroy responds when he returns this week at the Wells Fargo Championship. We know how resilient he is. A year ago, after a Sunday meltdown at Augusta, he bounced back a little more than two months later to capture the U.S. Open by eight shots at Congressional for his first major title. He needs a high finish this week to retake the No. 1 spot in the World Golf Rankings from Luke Donald. ... His comeback last year did not start right away; he shot 75-72--147 to miss the cut by three strokes in the Wells Fargo. That came in the title defense of Rory's first PGA Tour title -- the year before at Quail Hollow he shot 66-62 on the weekend to win by four strokes over Phil Mickelson. He played the first two rounds in 72-73--145, making it to the weekend right on the number. He became the first player on the PGA Tour to make the cut on the number and then win the tournament since Chris Couch at the 2006 Zurich Classic of New Orleans. He was two shots off the cut-line on Friday before hitting a 240-yard shot with a 4-iron into the wind over water to make an eagle on his 16th hole. ... McIlroy's tie for 40th at the Masters, where he shot 77-76 on the weekend, came after he had placed no worse than third in his first three PGA Tour events of the season, including a victory in the Honda Classic.

3. Phil Mickelson, United States -- After enjoying three weeks off with his family, Mickelson is ready to continue what has already been a very productive season on the PGA Tour. Even though he was disappointed with his tie for third in the Masters, where one bad shot cost him a shot at a fourth Green Jacket, it was his fourth finish in the top four this season, including the 40th victory of his career on the circuit in the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am. ... Mickelson, one week away from his induction into the World Golf Hall of Fame, is playing this week in the Wells Fargo Championship for the ninth time and has done everything but win the thing. He has placed in the top 10 six times, including each of the last three years, and finished out of the top 12 only when he tied for 35th in 2006. Two years ago, he seemed to be on the verge of winning at Quail Hollow for the first time when he closed with a 4-under-par 68, only to see Rory McIlroy roar past him with a brilliant 62 to claim his first PGA Tour victory. Mickelson tied for ninth last year, when a 74 in the third round cost him, and it was much the same three years ago, when a 75 in round three held him to a tie for fifth. ... Although he continues to be very much of a factor as he approaches his 42nd birthday in June, Mickelson's stamina might be becoming something of an issue. He is averaging fewer than 70 strokes over his first three rounds but is at 70.38 in the final round.

4. Bubba Watson, United States -- Following a 2 1/2-week merry-go-round after winning the Masters, Bubba admitted he was running on empty when he reached the first tee Thursday in the Zurich Classic of New Orleans. He might not have played at all had he not been the defending champion, and he made the cut right on the number at 71-71 by holing an 11-foot birdie putt on the 17th hole in the second round. Then he played well enough on the weekend to finish in a tie for 18th, which means he has finished in the top 20 in all eight of his tournaments this year. ... Watson had committed earlier to play this week in the Wells Fargo Championship for the seventh consecutive year, but he contacted tournament officials and told them he was withdrawing because needs to spend time with his family after being in such great demand since winning the Masters. Bubba does not have a great record at Quail Hollow, but he did tie for second in 2009, one stroke behind Sean O'Hair. That is his only finish in the top 10 in six appearances at the tournament in Charlotte. ... Watson played like the Masters champion last week at TPC Louisiana only when he shot 7-under-par 65 in the third round, carding seven birdies and an eagle. However, it could have been better because the only blemish on his card was a double-bogey 5 on the 17th hole, where he hit his tee shot into the water. His biggest problem was taking 33 putts each of the first two days before he averaged 27.5 on the weekend.

5. Steve Stricker, United States -- Stricker had a chance to record his second victory of the season last week, but he ran out of steam on the back nine Sunday while closing with a 2-under-par 70 to finish solo sixth in the Zurich Classic of New Orleans. It was his fourth top-10 result of the season on the PGA Tour and his best result since he captured the season-opening Hyundai Tournament of Champions. ... Stricker is taking another week off ahead of the Players Championship and is skipping the Wells Fargo Championship, which he has not played since 2008. He has played at Quail Hollow three times, missing the cut in 2003 and 2008 but finishing solo second in 2007. He played the weekend that year in 66-69, his only two rounds in the 60s on the course in eight tries, and finished two strokes behind Tiger Woods. ... Stricker played brilliant golf for 3 1/2 rounds last week at TPC Louisiana, posting rounds of 66-68-69 before playing the front nine in a flawless 3-under-par 33 on Sunday. However, he could manage only eight pars and a bogey, at No. 15, on the final nine to wind up four shots out of the playoff in which Jason Dufner beat Ernie Els. The back nine was his problem all week -- he played the front in a cumulative 15-under while struggling to a total of even par on the last nine holes. His putter was not as good as it usually is. After taking only 26 putts in the first round, he needed 29 on each of the last three days.

6. Lee Westwood, England -- Even though it might not have been against the strongest field, Westwood's victory two weeks ago in the CIMB Indonesian Masters continued what is shaping up as another terrific season for the No. 3-ranked player in the world. He has finished in the top four on five occasions, including a tie for third in the Masters, and in the nine tournaments he has played around the world, he has been out of the top 25 only when he tied for 29th in the WGC-Cadillac Championship at Doral. ... The Englishman is playing this week in the Wells Fargo Championship for the fourth time and has yet to perform at his best on the course at Quail Hollow. He shot 73-78--151 to miss the cut by five strokes in 2006, tied for 61st the following year and tied for 38th when he returned after a three-year absence in 2010. He has not broken 70 in any of his 10 rounds on the course in Charlotte. Because of his U.S. commitments, he did not defend his title in the Ballantine's Championship last week in South Korea. ... While Westwood wants a title in the Masters and the Green Jacket that goes with it more than anything, he has had more than his share of titles in some of those other Masters tournaments. His second consecutive title in the Indonesian Masters was his 11th victory, among his career total of 37, in which the tournaments has the word Masters in the title. He also has won the Volvo Scandinavian Masters twice, the Quinn Direct British Masters, the Portugal Masters, the Volvo Masters Andalucia, the Canon European Masters and the Sumitomo VISA Taiheiyo Masters three times.

7. Hunter Mahan, United States -- The FedEx Cup points leader and the only two-time winner on the PGA Tour this year as the midpoint of the season approaches, Mahan returns from a three-week break to play in the Wells Fargo Championship. His tie for 12th in the Masters was a bit disappointing since he closed with a 2-over-par 74 when he had a chance to claim his first major title, but there is no reason he can't pick up where he left off when he tees it up on Thursday at Quail Hollow. ... Mahan has played in the tournament eight times previously, and after missing the cut three times and being disqualified when he forgot to register after he got to Charlotte late as an alternate 2006, he has finished in the top 25 in each of the last four years. His best result was a tie for 12th in 2008; then he had bookend 4-under-par 68s while tying for 22nd in 2009, tied for 17th in 2010 and tied for 19th last year. However, he has broken 70 only three times in 22 rounds on the course. ... Mahan did not use it as an excuse, but he might have run out of gas a bit in the final round of the Masters, one week after he had to grind all the way to the finish to claim a one-stroke victory over Carl Pettersson of Sweden in the Shell Houston Open. He was asked about the fatigue factor by reporters but dismissed it. In the last 50 years, only Sandy Lyle (1988) and Phil Mickelson (2006) were able to win the week before the Masters and then claim the Green Jacket.

8. Justin Rose, England -- Playing catch-up after opening with an even-par 72 in the Zurich Classic of New Orleans last week, Rose closed with rounds of 67-68-68 to finish in a tie for 10th. It was his fourth finish in the top 10 this season, all coming in his last six outings, including his fourth victory of his PGA Tour career in the WGC-Cadillac Championship. ... Rose will finish any fine-tuning for the Players Championship at home in Lake Nona, Fla., passing on the Wells Fargo Championship even though he has played five times previously at Quail Hollow. He has missed the cut twice in the Charlotte event, and his tie for 28th last year, when he shot 69-69 on the weekend, was his best result in the tournament. One reason he will skip the tournaments is that he is playing four consecutive weeks starting with the Players, heading to Europe for the Volvo World Match Play Championship in Spain and the BMW PGA Championship in England before returning to the PGA Tour for the Memorial, which he won in 2010. ... Rose probably played his best golf of the week when he posted a 5-under-par 67 Friday at TPC Louisiana. However, the round was marred by a double-bogey 5 on the 14th hole, where he hit his tee shot into an unplayable lie and had to take a penalty stroke before reaching the green and two-putting from 38 feet. He was among the ball-striking leaders, hitting in the neighborhood of 80 percent of the fairways and greens, but averaged 29.0 putts per round, including 31 on Sunday.

9. Bill Haas, United States -- Haas will be trying to play his way out of a something of a funk when he tees it up this week in the Wells Fargo Championship. Since he holed a 43-foot putt on the second playoff hole to beat Phil Mickelson and Keegan Bradley in the Northern Trust Open, he has been unable to crack the top 25 in five consecutive tournaments. He might have hit bottom when he shot 74-74--148 to miss the cut by three strokes at the RBC Heritage in his last outing and could be ready to turn it around. ... Quail Hollow might be exactly the right place to begin his resurgence. Haas finished solo fourth there last year, ending up two strokes out of the playoff in which Lucas Glover defeated Jonathan Byrd. He opened with an 8-under-par 64 but could not break 70 the rest of the way. Haas missed the cut in three of his first five appearances in the Charlotte event, but he also tied for fourth in 2006, finishing five shots out of the playoff in which Jim Furyk beat Trevor Immelman. ... Thanks to a quick start to his season, which included a tie for fourth in the Farmers Insurance Open and two other results in the top 20, the defending FedEx champion does not have that much ground to make up in the standings despite his slump. He was at 11th last week, and his strong performance at Quail Hollow last year got him started on a second-half run that led to his victory at the Tour Championship.

10. Tiger Woods, United States -- There was a time, not all that long ago, when we knew exactly what to expect of Woods. His play would range from good to great, and he could even win when he didn't bring his "A" game. That was even true coming off breaks that ranged from weeks to months, but what he will do in the Wells Fargo Championship when he returns to the PGA Tour this week after his worst performance as a pro in the Masters is anyone's guess. ... Tiger had an enviable record at Quail Hollow until he went there in 2010 after tying for fourth in the Masters, which was his first tournament following his infamous SUV accident in the early hours after Thanksgiving in 2009. He shot 74-79 in the Charlotte event and recorded one of the seven missed cuts in his career. Woods had finished no worse than a tie for 11th in his previous four trips to Quail Hollow and won what was then called the Wachovia Championship by two strokes over Steve Stricker in 2007. ... Only days after Sean Foley, Woods' instructor, said it was time for the constant evaluation of his client to end, Butch Harmon got in his two cents' worth. Harmon, who coached Woods when he turned pro, said Tiger's swing seems robotic and that he might have lost his nerve on the greens. Harmon also was asked about "The Big Miss," a book written by a third instructor, Hank Haney, about his time with Woods. Harmon said he never would write a book about any of his clients, which have included Woods, Greg Norman and Phil Mickelson.

11. Keegan Bradley, United States -- After finishing no worse than a tie for 27th at the Masters in his first 10 tournaments of the year, Bradley shot 73-72--145 to miss the cut by three strokes in the Zurich Classic of New Orleans. It was the first time he failed to reach the weekend since the Deutsche Bank Championship last August during the PGA Tour playoffs, and it ended his streak of cuts made at 12. ... Bradley is going to give the Wells Fargo Championship another shot despite shooting 74-72--146 last year to miss the cut at Quail Hollow by two strokes. He was done in by going double bogey-bogey to finish the back nine on Friday after starting on No. 10 to record a 2-over-par 38 and couldn't save his weekend with a bogey-free 34 on the front. It was one of 10 missed cuts in 2010 for the eventual PGA Tour Rookie of the Year. ... Keegan's missed cut last week can be traced to one hole at TPC Louisiana, No. 4, which he played in 5-over-par for the two days. He drove into the water on Thursday en route to a double-bogey 6, but Saturday it was even worse. Bradley again hit his drive into the water and, after taking a drop, hit his second shot into an unplayable lie to get tagged with another penalty stroke on his way to a triple-bogey 7. That came as he was finishing round two on the front nine and seemingly en route to making the cut after an eagle at No. 18. He was 4-under for the other 34 holes.

12. Matt Kuchar, United States -- Kooch is taking a second week off at his home in Sea Island, Ga., before returning next week for the Players Championship, not that far down the road in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla. He has finished in the top 25 in seven of his nine tournaments on the PGA Tour this season, including four top-10s, which give him a total of 24 in the last three seasons. However, with all those chances, he has only one victory during that time, in the 2010 Barclays. ... Kuchar once was a regular in the Wells Fargo Championship but is passing on the tournament this week for the second consecutive year after playing seven times previously. That might be because he has missed the cut in three of his four appearances at Quail Hollow. His best finish there was a tie for 51st in 2003, the first time he played in the Charlotte event. He has broken 70 only once in 18 rounds, when he shot 4-under-par 68 in the second round en route to a tie for 70th in 2004, and he is a cumulative 29-over on the course. ... Kuchar's best finish this season was a tie for third in the Masters, and he really is looking forward to the second major of the year, the U.S. Open. That's because he was low amateur the last time our national championship was played at the Olympic Club, starting with 70-69 before playing the weekend in 76-74 to tie for 14th. He must like California in June, because his best finish in the tournament was a tie for sixth in 2010, right down the coast at Pebble Beach.

13. Dustin Johnson, United States -- What started out as what was described as a fairly minor back injury is turning into much more than that for DJ, who will not play again until at least the Players Championship next week. He has not played since he tied for 35th at the WGC-Cadillac Championship at Doral; he was forced to withdraw from the Masters a few days before the first major of the season. He played through what was supposedly only a tweaked back early in the year before aggravating it while trying to lift a jet ski. ... Johnson might have played this week in the Wells Fargo Championship in Charlotte even though he has missed the cut on two of his three appearances at Quail Hollow, including last year -- when he shot 72-79--151 and missed the weekend by seven strokes. It is not that far from his home in Myrtle Beach, however. ... Not only will Johnson not be idle for the eighth consecutive week on the PGA Tour, he missed a chance for a lucrative appearance fee last week when he withdrew from the Ballantine's Championship in South Korea. He made the trip to Blackstone Golf Club in Seoul for the first time last year and finished solo fourth, winding up three strokes behind winner Lee Westwood. Johnson is considered one of the best in the younger generation of young players, but while not playing he has fallen behind Bubba Watson, Hunter Mahan, Webb Simpson and Matt Kuchar in the World Golf Rankings.

14. Charl Schwartzel, South Africa -- Schwartzel finally will resurface on the PGA Tour until next week in the Players Championship, having last played in the U.S. since the Masters, although he did finish solo sixth in the Maybank Malaysian Open the week after the first major of the year. It's a long season for the South African, who the last two years has opened the season at home on the Sunshine Tour in January before coming to the U.S. to play on the PGA Tour. Then he finishes the season in the European Tour's Race to Dubai. Charl took this same break at home with his family after winning the Masters last year and playing in Malaysia. ... Schwartzel's finish in Malaysia was his best since he tied for fifth in the Honda Classic and then tied for fourth the following week in the WGC-Cadillac Championship. It seemed his game was coming around nicely for the defense of his title at Augusta, but he tied for 50th after missing the cut in the Transitions Championship and the Shell Houston Open. ... Schwartzel finished fourth in the Race to Dubai last year and doesn't have much work to do there to stay in contention, given that he ranks 10th in the standings. However, he needs to pick up the pace on the PGA Tour. He is 67th in the FedEx Cup standings after finishing 21st in the regular-season standings a year ago to qualify for the PGA Tour playoffs. However, without the burden of being the reigning Masters champion and coming back refreshed, he might be ready for a big second half of the season.

15. Mark Wilson, United States -- A 1997 graduate of the University of North Carolina, Wilson lives near Chicago now, but he heads back to the Tar Heel State almost every chance he gets on the PGA Tour. This week, he returns to the circuit after taking two weeks off and will play for the sixth consecutive year and the seventh time overall in the Wells Fargo Championship. ... Even though he enjoys coming back to Quail Hollow, Wilson has not fared all that well in the tournament. He has missed the cut in three of his seven appearances, including last year, when he shot 74-76--150 to miss the weekend by six strokes. However, he did play well two years ago, when he closed with a 5-under-par 67 to finish in a tie for seventh, nine strokes behind winner Rory McIlroy. That is the only time that Wilson has broken 70 in 18 rounds at Quail Hollow, where he is a total of 24-over. ... Wilson is playing for the 13th time on the PGA Tour this season, more than any of the top players, and he needs to find the form he had earlier this season, when he captured the Humana Challenge and finished third in the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship. When he tied for 24th in his last outing, at the RBC Heritage, it was the first time he had finished in the top 25 in his last six events, including a missed cut in the Masters. Wilson has won five times in his PGA Tour career but never after March, a dubious distinction that he would love to change.

16. Brandt Snedeker, United States -- Snedeker had committed to play in the Zurich Classic of New Orleans shortly before the deadline a week earlier, but tournament officials announced on the Monday before the event that he had withdrawn. No reason was given. The fact that he has not done well in the tournament might have been a factor -- he has missed the cut in all four of his appearances in the Big Easy, including three times at the current venue, TPC Louisiana. ... Sneds, who has played 10 times this season on the PGA Tour, more than most of the top players, also will skip this week's Wells Fargo Championship, another event in which he has not fared well. In three outings at Quail Hollow, he missed the cut in 2007, tied for 55th in 2008 and tied for 76th, or dead last among those players who made the cut, in 2010. He is a cumulative 18-over-par in the tournament, breaking 70 only when he shot 69 in the second round in 2008. ... Snedeker got his season off to a quick start with top-10 finishes in his first two events, including a playoff victory over Kyle Stanley in the Farmers Insurance Open, giving him three titles in his PGA Tour career. However, he has only one top-10 finish since, a tie for ninth in the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship. After failing to crack the top 25 in three consecutive tournaments, he has played better of late, tying for 19th in the Masters and tying for 17th in the RBC Heritage.

17. Adam Scott, Australia -- A slow start proved to be costly for Scott last week in the Ballantine's Championship in South Korea, where he rallied on the weekend to finish in a tie for 12th, one stroke out of the top 10. He has played in only four stroke-play events this season and finished no worse than a tie for 19th in his opener, the Northern Trust Open. His best result was a tie for eighth in the Masters. ... After making the long trip back from South Korea, the Aussie will take this week off in order to be fresh for the Players Championship, which he captured in 2004. He is skipping the Wells Fargo Championship for the second consecutive year after missing the cut in 2009 and 2010. He has had some success at Quail Hollow, finishing solo third in 2006, four strokes out of the playoff in which Jim Furyk beat Trevor Immelman, and tying for eighth in 2008. ... Scotty opened with 71-76 last week at Blackstone Golf Club in Seoul, carding his only birdie in the second round on the 18th hole. Then he played the weekend in 68-65, equaling the score of winner Bernd Weisberger of Austria over the last 36 holes but finishing 10 strokes behind. His best golf came when he played the first six holes Sunday in 6-under-par, including an eagle on the fifth hole. Perhaps the best news was that he was better on the greens after struggling a bit with his long putter this season. He averaged 28.3 putts per round even though he needed 32 on the way to his 76 in round two.

18. Webb Simpson, United States -- Simpson played his best golf in more than a month, but an even-par 72 in round two helped drag him down to a tie for 13th last week in the Zurich Classic of New Orleans. However, he posted three scores in the 60s and chipped in for eagle from 51 feet on the 72nd hole to shoot 69 in the final round. He missed out on his fourth top-10 finish of the season but recorded his best result since he tied for 10th in the Transitions Championship in the middle of March. ... Webb will be teeing it up for the 11th time on the PGA Tour this season when he makes his fourth appearance this week in the Wells Fargo Championship. After missing the cut at Quail Hollow in 2009 and 2010, playing the course in a cumulative 8-over-par, he tied for 21st last year, when one bad round cost him. He shot 5-under-par 67 in the second round and closed with a 69, but a 74 in round three cost him a top-10 finish one week after he lost in a playoff to Bubba Watson at New Orleans. ... Simpson carded five bogeys in the second round last week at TPC Louisiana to offset his five birdies but made only five bogeys in his other 54 holes, including three on Sunday. He ranked in the bottom third of the field in the ball-striking statistics but kept himself afloat by averaging 26.8 putts per round with his long wand, which ranked fourth in the field.

19. Jason Day, Australia -- The best-case scenario for Day's return to the PGA Tour has worked out; the Wells Fargo Championship announced early last week that he had committed to the tournament this week. Day has not played since walking off the course after seven holes of the second round in the Masters because of a tendon injury in his left foot and ankle. He sustained the injury in a training session the week before the first major of the year, and doctors told him he might be out for as long as six weeks. ... Day apparently did not aggravate the injury walking the hilly fairways at Augusta, where he tied for second last year, and he will be playing at Quail Hollow for the second time. In his first appearance in the tournament last year, he recorded a respectable tie for 22nd, breaking 70 only when he shot 3-under-par 69 in the second round. ... Day seemed to be getting his season headed in the right direction when he posted three consecutive top-20 finishes heading into the Masters. His best result this year was a tie for second in the Commercial Bank Qatar Masters on the European Tour, finishing four strokes behind Paul Lawrie of Scotland. Day, one of the rising stars in the game at the age of 24, knows he has to start finding the winner's circle. He has finished second four times since his last victory, in the 2010 HP Byron Nelson Championship. That's the only time he has won on the PGA Tour.

20. Nick Watney, United States -- Even though he hasn't played his best this season, Watney managed to make the cut in his first nine tournaments before he shot 74-73--147 to miss the cut by five shots last week in the Zurich Classic of New Orleans. He had reached the weekend in 16 consecutive PGA Tour events, dating to the Open Championship last year at Royal St. George's. ... Hoping to get his game going in the right direction heading into the Players Championship, Nick will tee it up in the Wells Fargo Championship for the eighth consecutive year. He posted five finishes in the top 25 in his first six starts at Quail Hollow before he shot 76-75--151 last year, making only three birdies, to miss the cut by seven strokes. His best result in the tournament was a tie for 11th in 2005, the first time he played in the Charlotte event. ... Watney tried to rally down the stretch while finishing on the front nine in round two at TPC Louisiana, carding three birdies in a span of four holes. However, he ran out of gas and finished with four pars and a bogey at No. 6. He made only two other birdies in 36 holes, both in round one. Any chance he might have had of salvaging the weekend probably was lost when he carded a double-bogey 7 on No. 18 after starting round two on the back nine. He drove into the water, had to re-tee, hit his second drive into a fairway bunker and took five strokes to reach the green.

Others receiving consideration: Graeme McDowell, Northern Ireland; Ian Poulter, England; Louis Oosthuizen, South Africa; Martin Laird, Scotland; Zach Johnson, United States; Johnson Wagner, United States; Kyle Stanley, United States; Aaron Baddeley, Australia; Ben Crane, United States; K.J. Choi, South Korea; Robert Garrigus, United States; Ernie Els, South Africa; Jim Furyk, United States; Kevin Na, United States; Carl Pettersson, Sweden; Ben Curtis, United States; John Huh, United States; Jason Dufner, United States.