Mickelson hopes to join elite club

Phil Mickelson will be trying to become only the 13th player to be No. 1 since the world golf rankings began in 1986 when he tees it up Thursday in The Players Championship in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.

His second-place finish in the Quail Hollow Championship, secured by a 15-foot birdie putt on the final hole, put him in position to overtake Tiger Woods, who has held the No. 1 ranking for five years. There is one catch. Woods has to finish outside the top five in order for there to be a changing of the guard. But considering how poorly Woods played at Quail Hollow in missing the cut, the chances of that happening appear to be good.

Apparently, the thought of losing the No. 1 ranking doesn't sit well with Woods. He arrived at the TPC Sawgrass course today for a practice round with Rod Pampling and Jay Haas. Practicing on the course of an upcoming event on a Monday is unusual for Woods, who has finished out of the top 20 at least five times in The Players Championship despite winning it in 2001.

These are difficult times for Woods. While various sources have reported he is facing an imminent divorce, a Sports Illustrated survey recently published indicates that one out of four players suspect Woods of using performance enhancing drugs. Seventy-one players took part in a series of poll questions, all on the condition of anonymity, and questions linger about his association with Dr. Anthony Galea. But Woods has never failed a PGA Tour drug test.

Some golf insiders also have been questioning Woods' relationship with swing coach Hank Haney despite the success he has had with the instructor's help since 2005. Under Haney's tutelage, Woods has won six major championships and has had more consistently high finishes that at any point in his career. But his swing problems at the Masters and last weekend's Quail Hollow Championship have once again turned up the scrutiny.

But before everyone buries Tiger and hands the No. 1 spot over to Mickelson, it should be noted that Woods has a history of bouncing back from missed cuts. After missing the cut at the 2006 U.S. Open, he won six of his next seven tournaments. He also won three of his next seven tournaments and finished second in three others after missing the cut at the 2009 British Open.

QUICK PITCH SHOTS: Rory McIlroy's final-round 62 at Quail Hollow created such a buzz in golf circles that some are calling it an historic turning point. That may be a bit over the top, but the four-shot victory over Mickelson did propel the young Irishman to No. 9 from No. 13 in the official world golf rankings released today. ... McIlroy's stunning victory wasn't the only noteworthy performance last weekend. Ryo Ishikawa fired a Japanese tour record 12-under-par 58 Sunday in winning the Crowns tournament in Nagoya, three years after he became the tour's youngest winner at 15. ... Ai Miyazato won for the third time in just five LPGA events in 2010 when she shot a 67 and edged Stacy Lewis by one shot and Michelle Wie by two in the Tres Marias tournament in Mexico. Lorena Ochoa, in her last tournament before stepping away from the LPGA Tour to pursue other interests, finished sixth, handing over the No. 1 spot in women's golf to Jiyai Shin, who won in Japan. Shin became the first person to hold that spot since Ochoa took it over in April of 2007. ... Finally, Alvaro Quiros joined Seve Ballesteros and Sergio Garcia as the only home winners of the Open de Espana since 1972 when he beat James Morrison on the first hole of a playoff.

Information from GolfObserver.com, ESPN.com, PGATOUR.com, Golf.com and the Associated Press contributed to this post.