Westwood at career best in golf rankings

VIRGINIA WATER, England, Nov. 23 (UPI) -- Lee Westwood's lucrative victory at the European PGA Tour's Dubai World Championship improved his world ranking to a career best.

Westwood was very impressive over the weekend, shooting a course-record 8-under-par 64 Sunday in winning the tournament in the United Arab Emirates by six shots. The tournament title was worth $1.25 million and pushed Westwood to the top of the European Tour's money list, earning him an additional $1.5 million bonus.

The win boosted his world ranking to No. 4, matching the highest of his career. Sergio Garcia, going from ninth to eighth, and Rory McIlroy, moving from 13th to 10th, also benefited from playing in the Dubai World Championship.

While Americans Tiger Woods, whose is No. 1 for the 233rd consecutive week, No. 2 Phil Mickelson and third-rated Steve Stricker are at the top for the rankings, six of the next seven spots are Europeans, marking the first time six European players have been in the Top 10 at the same time.

Westwood knocked Paul Casey to No. 5 while Padraig Harrington and Henrik Stenson kept their Nos. 6 and 7, respectively, rankings. Kenny Perry, another American, dropped one spot because of Garcia's move up to ninth.