Following the changing of the guard at the top of the Official World Golf Rankings on Monday, there have been more than a few people to speak out about the effectiveness of the system. One of the most outspoken voices in the crowd was former Tiger Woods swing coach, Butch Harmon.

Harmon said that the “system sucked” and that the honor of world No. 1 should be bestowed upon Martin Kaymer because he is the best player in the world right now.

“Kaymer should be number one,” Harmon, who now works with Phil Mickelson said. “Did Westwood win a major this year, or any year? I think not.”

The OWGR guru Ian Barker came out in his system’s defense.

“If we just prepared it on the points won so far this year Woods would not be in the top 50 and Martin Kaymer would be comfortably the world number one,” Barker, the European Tour’s director of information services, told Reuters.

“We all know how well Martin has played over the last two months and that Lee has been injured. But the American contenders haven’t played either.”

It’s kind of amazing that if the system were based on a shorter time period that Tiger would not even be in the top 50. Maybe Barker is on to something. Regardless of how poorly Tiger has played this year, compared to Tiger of the past, he is undoubtedly still one of the 50 best players in the world in nearly everyone’s mind. Perhaps the fact that he would have dropped out of the top 50 is proof that the two-year rolling rankings is the best measure of world rankings.

Barker admitted that the formula is complicated and it is necessarily so. The OWGR pools together 10 different tours and ranks everyone on the same list. So as it stands, it seems like Barker has won this tilt using rational thinking and explanation, as much as others still think the system is flawed.

“You will never have a system that everybody thinks is perfect but it’s strength is that it’s completely transparent and not voted by committee. It’s pure maths.”

For Harmon, as well as the many others who think Westwood is undeserving of the ranking, the HSBC Champions this week will give each of the top four players in the world a chance to lay claim to the top ranking. Westwood could silence all of his critics with a win this week and subsequent major victory in 2011, or Tiger, Kaymer or even Mickelson can take over the top spot with a win at Sheshan.