Smith's Olympic dream in grave danger amid slide

Cameron Smith is no longer Australia's top-ranked male golfer, having been overtaken by Jason Day in the latest world rankings.

Smith was poor at both the Australian PGA Championship and then at the Australian Open, where he finished in a tie for 17th, and has dropped to No.23 as a result, four spots behind the 19th-ranked Day.

The ranking is Smith's lowest since November 2021 and it is the first time he's not been Australia's top golfer since he took over from Adam Scott following the 2021 Masters.

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Day finished 11th while playing in Tiger Woods' Hero World Challenge at the weekend, with that result enough to lift him ahead of the sliding Smith.

A combination of swing and injury issues had Day, the 2015 PGA Championship winner, ranked a career-low of No.159 in August last year, but the 36-year-old has steadily climbed the rankings since. He entered 2022 ranked No.122.

Day's rise has come as a result of eight top-10 finishes in 24 events for the calendar year.

Smith's slide could have a major impact on his hopes of qualifying for Paris 2024, with the in-form Min Woo Lee (ranked No.35) also vying for one of the two Olympic spots.

"I normally tend to play well when I need to make something or I need to do something to get in a tournament, so I'm really excited for that," Lee said of his Olympic bid.

"That would be a true honour to play for Australia."

The Australian places for Paris 2024 will be decided according to the world rankings at June 17 for men and June 24 for women.

The top 15 players in the world all all automatically qualify for the Olympics. There are a maximum of two spots per country for players ranked lower in order to fill the field of 120 players, with 60 in the men's and 60 in the women's events.

American star Scottie Scheffler retains the No.1 ranking, with Rory McIlroy and Jon Rahm rounding out the top three. Cameron Davis (43), Adam Scott (44) and Lucas Herbert (67) are the other Aussies ranked in the top 100.