Who will be golf's next world number one?

It's closing in on one full calendar year since current world number one Dustin Johnson rose to the summit of world golf. Over the past twelve months or so, other players have jostled for position in behind without ever really threatening to usurp the 2016 U.S. Open champion.

At Hole19 HQ we've been getting all hypothetical and prophetic in considering who will be the man to finally topple DJ and become the best player in the men's game (statistically at least).

Let's look at the main runners and riders.

Jon Rahm (Current World Ranking - No. 2)

An outright win at last week's Farmers Insurance Open would have propelled Rahm to the top of the rankings and also added the gloss to an incredible 12 months.

Earlier this month the prodigious Spaniard added the CareerBuilder Challenge to three tournament wins in 2017. He came up short at Torrey Pines last time out but can dethrone DJ with a win at this week's Waste Management Open on the fairways of TPC Scottsdale.

It seems a matter of 'when' and not 'if' Rahm becomes the world's best golfer.

Catch the highlights of his recent CareerBuilder Challenge win below:

Jordan Spieth (Current World Ranking - No. 3)

He's been there before and it's very likely he will be there again; Jordan Spieth is every inch a world number one golfer.

Now with three major championships to his name - after a battling display at Royal Birkdale in winning last year's Open Championship - the young Texan joins Rory McIlroy in the race for the final leg of their career grand slams.

Here's a memory jog of Spieth's interview after being crowned the Champion Golfer of the Year:

Justin Thomas (Current World Ranking - No. 4)

Undoubtedly, Justin Thomas is in the Jon Rahm mould as an obvious world number one in waiting, A scintillating 2017 was perfectly rounded off with a first major title (PGA Championship at Quail Hollow) and the PGA Tour Player Of The Year accolade.

With four tournament wins in the calendar year to his name, JT also joined the '59 Club' at the Sony Open in January before setting a U.S. Open record by posting a nine-under-par 63 in his third round at Erin Hills.

Watch Thomas join the 59 club below:

Hideki Matsuyama (Current World Ranking - No. 5)

Could Hideki become Asia's first world number one golfer? It's possible.

The Japanese superstar has peaked as high as second place in the Official World Golf Rankings (after finishing T-2 at last year's U.S. Open) and he will be aiming to go one better in 2018. Picking up a maiden major championship this year - and in turn becoming only the second Asian to do so - would help immensely.

Key to Hideki's success is his extensive warm-up routine:

Rory McIlroy (Current World Ranking - No. 8)

Tiger Woods apart, Rory has spent most weeks at world number one in the current field and has been in sparkling form since his return to competitive golf in 2018.

This week's near miss at the Omega Dubai Desert Classic came hot on the heels of a T-3 at the WGC HSBC Championship in Abu Dhabi. We expect a tournament win sooner rather than later for the Northern Irishman, but he will have to put together a sequence of impressive results to get by Johnson in the standings.

With a full playing schedule in the lead up to The Masters in April, this could be the year he finally puts on that elusive 'Green Jacket'.

Recently Rory hosted an amateur golfer competition winner during the Omega Dubai Desert Classic Pro-Am:

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