Justin Thomas, who finished in a tie for 11th at the Players Championship, has replaced Dustin Johnson as the new men’s world No 1 in the latest rankings.

Thomas’ tie for 11th, coupled with Johnson’s tied 17th, was enough for Thomas to leapfrog Johnson as the new No 1 player in the world. Thomas, 25, becomes the fourth-youngest player to hold the top spot in the Official World Golf Ranking and the 21st overall since the rankings began in 1986.

Five wins in 2017 helped Thomas gain ground. He was ranked 22nd at the end of 2016 but jumped to third at the end of 2017. He dropped a spot back at the beginning of 2018, but a victory at The Honda Classic followed by a runner-up finish at the WGC-Mexico Championship moved him to second. He had a couple of opportunities to pass Johnson recently but wasn’t able to get it done.

Johnson, who drops down to No 2, held the top spot since February 2017.

Charl Schwartzel’s tie for second behind Webb Simpson at the Players saw him move up 19 places to 43rd. The leading South African remains Louis Oosthuizen, who dropped two positions to 35th, while Branden Grace is down one position at No 36. Dylan Frittelli also dropped one spot, to 55th, as did George Coetzee to 94th, to ensure that five South Africans remain in the top 100.

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