Needed adjustment: New ranking points in '12

• By Ryan Ballengee
• Dec 7, 2011 11:02 AM ET

A 2012 change in the Official World Golf Ranking means tournaments like the Chevron World Challenge and Nedbank Golf Challenge will offer fewer world ranking points to its very limited fields.

In July, keepers of the ranking announced that tournaments with under 30 players - less than the field of the Tour Championship - would not be able to take advantage of so-called "home tour" points.

These bonus points boost the perceived value of a tournament by increasing the ranking for having the top 30 players from the "home tour" in the field. Their original intent was to supplement the value of tournaments on weaker tours which are unlikely to attract top names. In this case, however, "home tour" points further inflated the value of these small fields.

Though not an official event, the Nedbank Golf Challenge considers the Sunshine Tour its home. Woods' California event is unofficial as well, but is aligned with the PGA Tour.

The elimination of "home tour" points would not have impacted either of these events by very much, according to Ian Barker of the Official World Golf Ranking.

"Chevron first-place points would have been reduced from 44 to 40 but, in fact, Nedbank would have stayed at 38," he said in an email.

In Sun City, Charl Schwartzel was the only player with top status on the Sunshine Tour.