Spieth regains No. 1 despite missing cut

NORTON, Mass. -- If golf is a fickle thing then you should see what the rankings for the No. 1 player in the world have been like lately.

Take the back-and-forth between Rory McIlroy and Jordan Spieth.

Spieth didn't get anything going for the second week in a row and missed the cut at the Deutsche Bank Championship by 2 strokes. McIlroy played poorly, but at least was still playing on Labor Day at TPC Boston.

Even without Spieth playing the final two rounds and McIlroy finishing with a 5-under 66 to get to 3-under for the four days, it is Spieth who will be ranked No. 1 in the world because McIlroy couldn't leapfrog basically an entire field of golfers yesterday.

If you think that's strange, just think about how McIlroy reclaimed the No. 1 ranking before the week started. He sat out The Barclays and Spieth played poorly, missing the first cut of the FedEx Cup playoffs. The world golf rankings are based on a two-year rolling period.

Got a Popsicle headache yet?

"I don't see any other way," McIlroy said. "You can do it on a one-year point system. I think two years is a reflection of how you played. At the end of the day it's just about playing and playing well. I don't know any way we could determine the best player in the world if you go on majors or number of wins in the season."

McIlroy showed signs that he might be coming out of his slow return from an ankle injury. He said he's not too focused on the No. 1 ranking, focusing more on just playing well the rest of the way in the FedEx Cup playoffs.

"I'd love to play well next week and get myself into the top five going into Atlanta," McIlroy said. "That's still the goal."

This article was written by Tom Layman from Boston Herald and was legally licensed through the NewsCred publisher network.