HILTON HEAD ISLAND, S.C. — Luke Donald said he has proven he’s among the world’s best, even if he won’t have the No. 1 ranking to prove it.

Donald finished off a disappointing week at the RBC Heritage with an even-par 71 on Sunday. Donald needed to finish among the top eight at Harbour Town Golf Links to keep the top spot. Instead, he was 16 shots off the lead and will surrender No. 1 to Rory McIlroy when the new world rankings are released Monday.

“Is it a concern? No,” Donald said. “Obviously, I’d have liked to have played a bit more consistently this year. I built it up nicely last year through tournaments and winning a bunch. As a result, there’s a little bit of fluctuation in the world rankings now.”

Largely between Donald and McIlroy.

Donald was ranked No. 1 for 40 weeks, a run that ended following McIlroy’s win at the Honda Classic last month. Donald needed just two weeks to reclaim the spot with his victory at the Transitions Championship.

The 22-year-old McIlroy, like most of golf’s best, took the week off after the Masters.