Power Rankings for the World Golf Championships-HSBC Champions

The WGC-HSBC Champions features a star-studded field that includes Rory McIlroy, K.J. Choi, Lee Westwood, Ian Poulter and Keegan Bradley.

World No. 1 Luke Donald was set to play until a few days ago, when he abruptly pulled out of the tournament. Donald and his wife are expecting the couple's second child.

"Making history in the sport is very important to me, but the roles of husband and father are the most important in the world to me and being there for my wife and family is where I have to be," said Donald.

The hot topic for this tournament is the PGA Tour's decision to recognize the HSBC Champions in its Player of the Year race. 

That makes this tournament a lot more important to players like Keegan Bradley. 

Bradley has had two wins this season which ties him with Luke Donald—the clear cut favorite at this point in the season. 

However, Bradley won the PGA Championship and a WGC win would make it impossible to give the Player of the Year award to any one else.

Let's rank the top contenders for the upcoming tournament:

1. Rory McIlroy

He won this past week at the Shanghai Masters and will be highly motivated to continue his hot play in a tournament very important to his World Golf Ranking. A high finish or a win here would make up some ground in Rory's bid to catch Luke Donald in the Order of Merit race. 

2. Lee Westwood

He was the runner-up here last year and has finished in the Top 10 in 10 of his last 14 tournaments. He is coming off of a fifth place finish at last week's Shanghai Masters.

3. K.J. Choi

Choi has five straight Top 10s worldwide dating back to the PGA Championship, including a win in his own tournament on the Asian Tour. He is coming off of a share of seventh place at last week's Shanghai Masters. 

4. Ian Poulter

The founder of IJP Designs is most dangerous in a small field like this one where he has the chance to play into the heads of his competitors. He is coming off of a solo sixth place finish at last week's Shanghai Masters.

5. Keegan Bradley

He seems to have the most on the line this week and I can't imagine a better finish to his dream season. The recent winner of the PGA Grand Slam of Golf is coming off of a shared eleventh place finish at the Shanghai Masters.

6. Peter Hanson

His worst finish in the last five weeks was his share of eleventh place in Portugal. He tied for fifth here last year and he is ranked 11th in greens hit on the European Tour. 

7. Thomas Bjorn

Coming off a shared 15th place finish at Valderrama last week, the three-time European Tour winner in 2011 will be looking for a higher finish. 

8. Nick Watney 

Watney has had a great season that saw a win at the World Golf Championships-Accenture Match Play. He also won the AT&T National and had a decent finish in Shanghai last year.

9. Charl Schwartzel

He tied for sixteenth here a year ago and put on a performance that made us reminisce about the Masters at the Grand Slam of Golf, albeit falling just short. Schwartzel has 10 Top 25s in 15 starts. 

10. Paul Casey

He tied for sixth here last year, and finished tied for sixth at the Frys.com Open a few weeks ago. A good finish here will restore a lot of confidence and continue his path to regaining the top form he was playing at a year ago. 

Sleeper Pick: Francesco Molinari

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