LPGA Tour and World Golf Halls of Fame member Karrie Webb moved up five spots and is now eighth in this week's Rolex Rankings, following her 10th-career international victory at the Australian Ladies Masters. The 15-year LPGA veteran won the event for the seventh time, closing with a course-record 11-under-par 61, also tying her career-low, for the six-stroke victory.
The Australian has won 36 times on the LPGA Tour, with her most recent victory coming at the 2009 J Golf Phoenix LPGA International Presented by Mirassou Winery, her first since winning five times in 2006. Through the first two events on the 2010 LPGA Tour schedule, Webb has tied for fourth (Honda PTT LPGA Thailand) and tied for 19th) HSBC Women's Champions).
The Rolex Rankings (www.rolexrankings.com) are sanctioned by the five major women's professional golf tours: the LPGA; Ladies European Tour (LET); Ladies Professional Golfers' Association of Japan (LPGA of Japan); Korea Ladies Professional Golf Association (KLPGA); Australian Ladies Professional Golf (ALPG); as well as the Ladies Golf Union (LGU), which administers the RICOH Women's British Open.
The Rolex Ranking Board and Technical committee recently agreed on several modifications to the Strength of Field calculations which include: an increase in the World Points factor from 200 to 400; a minimum value of 100 for Strength of Field for all Tours, except the Duramed FUTURES Tour; and the implementation of a true Strength of Field calculation for Duramed FUTURES Tour events, rather than the fixed points ratio of the past.
The Rolex Rankings are the only women's world rankings that incorporate player performances from the five major tours and the Duramed FUTURES Tour, the official developmental tour of the LPGA.