Not all professional golf wins are equal.
Tony Finau won for the sixth time on the PGA Tour on Sunday, claiming the 2023 Mexico Open at Vidanta. He beat a mostly watered-down field, but he did fend off world No. 1 Jon Rahm, the defending champion who claimed solo second.
Meanwhile, halfway around the world, Talor Gooch won on the LIV Golf League for the second time in as many weeks.
On Monday, when the latest Official World Golf Ranking was updated, Finau had climbed five spots to No. 11, while Gooch dropped a spot to No. 60.
Golfers do not earn world ranking points in LIV Golf League events. The league’s application to receive OWGR points is under review.
Gooch ended 2022 ranked 40th. In 2023 he has two wins, and in all five of his starts he’s finished at least tied for 18th or better in the 48-man fields on LIV.
Since the start of 2023, Finau has 11 starts, 11 made cuts, one win, three top-10s and eight top-20s.
Gooch, who played the Masters last month and did get an invitation to the PGA Championship in three weeks, recently found out he is not exempt into the U.S. Open in June.
