European Tour: DP World Tour Championship top 10 power rankings

DUBAI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES - NOVEMBER 20: Matt Fitzpatrick of England poses with the trophy and Emirates girls following his victory during day four of the DP World Tour Championship at Jumeirah Golf Estates on November 20, 2016 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. (Photo by Andrew Redington/Getty Images) /

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NORTON, MA – SEPTEMBER 02: Jon Rahm of Spain acknowledges the crowd after putting on the ninth green during round two of the Dell Technologies Championship at TPC Boston on September 2, 2017 in Norton, Massachusetts. (Photo by Andrew Redington/Getty Images) /

This is the part of the rankings where I really felt like I was drawing at straws. Jon Rahm’s had a fantastic season, but his last two starts (MC, T36) and this being his DP World Tour Championship debut are just enough to slide him down the list.

Slotting him this low feels wrong, though, considering the year the recently turned 23-year-old has had. Grant you, he did most of this on courses he’s seeing for the first time:

Rahm has a Rolex Series win at the Irish Open, a PGA Tour win at the well-regarded Farmers Insurance Open, two runner-ups and two third-place finishes. Pile on seven more top-10s and only three missed cuts and it’s only a matter of time before the Spaniard locks up a spot on the 2018 European Ryder Cup team.

Had he played more in Europe, he’d be in the mix for the No. 1 spot in the Race to Dubai. Nonetheless, a top 10 spot is cinched up.

An errant driver (120th on the PGA Tour last season in accuracy) seems to be the only concern for Rahm this week. He was second in strokes gained off-the-tee and third SG tee-to-green and a top-50 putter.

After taking a week off last week, Rahm should be fresh for this week.

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