Thomas takes second in rankings, McIlroy returns to top five

Paris: American Justin Thomas regained second place in the world rankings from Justin Rose on Monday after easing to a four-shot victory in the WGC Bridgestone Invitational at the weekend.

The 25-year-old will start the defence of his USPGA Championship title on Thursday in red-hot form after his fifth tournament win in the last 12 months.

Dustin Johnson remains world number one, though, after a thrilling charge on Sunday ultimately saw him finish tied for third in Akron.

Four-time major winner Rory McIlroy moved back into the top five for the first time since September 2017, despite falling out of contention at Firestone with a disappointing final round.

World top 20

1. Dustin Johnson (USA)           10.77 average pts

2. Justin Thomas (USA)             9.49 (+1)

3. Justin Rose (ENG)               8.83 (-1)

4. Brooks Koepka (USA)             7.87

5. Rory McIlroy (NIR)              7.37 (+2)

6. Francesco Molinari (ITA)        7.27

7. Jon Rahm (ESP)                  7.24 (-2)

8. Jordan Spieth (USA)             6.99

9. Rickie Fowler (USA)             6.62

10. Jason Day (AUS)                6.39