Notebook: Ogilvy down to last chance to make it into Masters next year

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- Geoff Ogilvy is down to his last chance if he wants to head into the offseason assured a tee time at Augusta National in April.

The former U.S. Open champion began the year at No. 36 and has fallen to No. 56. This is the last week of golf that counts toward the world ranking, and the Masters takes the top 50 at the end of the season.

Holding down the 50th spot is Thorbjorn Olesen, who is not playing this week. Neither is Alex Noren, who is at No. 51. George Coetzee is at No. 49 and playing the Alfred Dunhill Championship in South Africa.

Besides Ogilvy, the only other player from No. 51 through No. 60 playing this week is Marcus Fraser of Australia, who is at the Iskandar Johor Open on the Asian Tour.

If there are no changes in the world ranking, 14 players would be added to the field, bringing the total to 85 players going into the new season. Any winner of a PGA Tour event gets in (except for Puerto Rico), along with the top 50 after the Shell Houston Open.

WORLD CUP RETURN: The World Cup of Golf returns next year, and it could have an old look -- with a new wrinkle.

The International Federation of PGA Tours is considering a proposal to return the two-man competition to 72 holes of stroke play, which would allow for an individual champion along with the lowest team score. The last time the World Cup used that format was in 1999, when the Americans won with Tiger Woods and Mark O'Meara and Woods won the individual medal

The new wrinkle? With an individual competition, the federation is looking into offering world ranking points.

"We're still in discussions about that," PGA Tour spokesman Ty Votaw said. "Those discussions do include the possibility of converting it into stroke play with a team element and ranking points."

The PGA Tour got involved after 1999, briefly turned it into a World Golf Championship and changed the format to a pure team competition, with two rounds each of foursomes and four-balls.

JONES AWARD: Davis Love III goes from one prestigious honor to another. Unlike the Ryder Cup captaincy, the Bob Jones Award won't take two years out of his life.

The USGA selected Love to receive its highest honor. The Bob Jones Award began in 1655 and recognizes an individual who demonstrates the spirit, personal character and respect for the game that was reflected in Jones, golf's greatest amateur and a nine-time USGA champion.

Love has won 20 times on the PGA Tour, along with the 1997 PGA Championship at Winged Foot. The reason for being chosen for the Bob Jones Award perhaps was summed up best by longtime friend Tom Kite.

"Davis has conducted himself with such style and grace that everyone in the game respects and admires him," Kite said. "And Davis respects and admires those who make our game so rich. The big thing Davis has in common with Bob Jones is that as much as he loves golf, he loves the people in golf more."

Love previously won the USGA International Book Award for "Every Shot I Take," a tribute to his late father. He also received the Payne Stewart Award from the PGA Tour in 2008. Love will receive the Bob Jones Award on Feb. 2 in San Diego during the USGA's annual meeting.

DIVOTS: Scott Hoch, who turned 57 last month, has taken his one-time exemption from the top 50 on the career money list to be exempt on the PGA Tour this year. Hoch never had to use the exemption while active, and he's only $760,907 from falling out of the top 50 in career money, so he might as well. Jerry Kelly, Mike Weir and Justin Leonard are using exemptions from the top 25 on the career money list. Stuart Appleby is using his exemption from the top 50, even though he is at No. 19. Appleby used his one-time exemption from the top 25 in 2010, the year he closed with a 59 to win the Greenbrier Classic. ... B.F. "Bev" Dolan of North Palm Beach, Fla., who in 1954 introduced the E-Z-GO golf car, has been selected by the PGA of America for the Ernie Sabayrac Award for lifetime contributions to the golf industry. ... The Ladies European Tour has chosen Ivan Khodabakhsh as its new CEO. He had been head of the World Series Boxing in Switzerland. He replaces Alexandra Armas, who is stepping down after eight years.

FINAL WORD: "I'll play golf wherever I can." -- Heath Slocum, who doesn't have full PGA Tour status for the first time since 2001.