difference between tour championship and fedex cup

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The FedEx Cup Finale Is Here, But Don't Call It 'Playoffs'

• Author: Gary Van Sickle

ATLANTA, Ga. — About the FedEx Cup finale this week here at East Lake …

These are fake playoffs. Real playoffs feature upsets and the danger of losing. Like, say, when the Jacksonville Jaguars , behind quarterback Blake Bortles— Blake Bortles! —stunned the Pittsburgh Steelers to reach the 2017 AFC Championship game. Or any time the mighty New York Yankees got eliminated in the American League’s divisional playoffs.

No favorites get eliminated during the FedEx Cup. The top players who had strong seasons get The Wave directly to East Lake with two lucrative stops on the way to maybe improve their final starting positions. The only potential drama in the first two rounds is which players get left behind when the field is cut from 70 to 50 after Memphis and then from 50 to 30 after the BMW Championship. In other words, zero drama. Unless you’re still grieving about Justin Thomas, Akshay Bhatia, Adam Scott and Taylor Pendrith not being in Atlanta.

The final will have drama, if we’re lucky, and get a close finish. You may remember in 2010 when Jim Furyk, wearing his cap backwards in the rain, holed a putt to win the $10 million first prize. That was a moment, a good one. It just wasn’t a playoff moment.

Jim Furyk's emotion was compelling in winning the 2010 FedEx Cup. But was it a great "playoff" moment?

Jeff Robinson/Getty Images

This is merely an entertainment vehicle. Some internet genius ranked the 10 most important golf events to win on the platform formerly known as Twitter and put the FedEx Cup third after the four major championships and the Ryder Cup . If only John McEnroe was available to scream “you cannot be serious!”

Yes, every golf tournament is entertainment and a television show first, a golf tournament second. ( Sorry about that, U.S. Open .) But the Tour Championship is rigged to guarantee that all the marquee players make it to East Lake. It was originally designed to make sure Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson weren’t left out, as often happened in the old Match Play Championship, a World Golf Championships event.

Scottie Scheffler ranks No. 1 this week and will start this unique format with a two-shot lead over Viktor Hovland and a 10-shot lead over the bottom five players in this 30-man field.

Scheffler called it like he saw it Wednesday morning: “I wouldn't say this the best format to identify the best golfer for the year. I get it. It's made for TV. It may be more exciting for the fans to have this type of format. But I'm starting this week with a two-shot lead and we’re playing for a lot of money. I'm not complaining about it. I'm very grateful for that.”

Remember when PGA Tour players and backers ridiculed LIV Golf for having small 48-player fields and no cut? The Tour Championship has only 30 players but the difference is, they had to qualify for this based on their season-long play. The LIV Golf players were simply ordained for their well-paying positions.

Your reigning Masters champion, Jon Rahm , declined to rank the FedEx Cup’s importance while he’s here this week. He’s a polite guy. He simply stated the obvious, that the majors are golf’s biggest deals, but that this week feels different because it’s “a culmination of a whole year in these last three weeks.”

Does the FedEx Cup system work? Sometimes. Like Tiger Woods, Rory McIlroy and Vijay Singh. But sometimes you get Brandt Snedeker, Billy Horschel and Bill Haas.

A format change won’t happen. At least the staggered start puts all players on the same page, scoring-wise. The days of unlucky Steve Sands doing serious math on live TV for Golf Channel as he calculated the constantly changing FedEx Cup point totals are over. With the players taking control of the PGA Tour Policy Board after the addition of Tiger Woods , which gives them a majority, the FedEx Cup is unlikely to change. Why mess with success? And even better, why mess with this kind of guaranteed money?

“Of all the iterations of the Tour Championship and FedEx Cup playoffs, I think this is the best one yet,” Rory McIlroy said Wednesday. “I can’t sit here and say I’ve thought of something better. I like it this way. It gives the guys who had better years an advantage going into the week, which I think they should have. I think it works pretty well right now.”

Of course McIlroy likes it. He won the FedEx Cup three times, including last year, and bagged $33 million. That’s the very definition of “it works pretty well right now”… for him.

Well of course Rory McIlroy likes the FedEx Cup, he's won it three times (2016 pictured).

Adam Hagy/USA TODAY Sports

The meaning of the FedEx Cup. Mainly, it’s the $18 million first prize. Are we supposed to be on pins and needles wondering whether Scheffler, who has already won $19 million this year, can snag even more dough that he doesn’t need and will never spend?

Thanks to LIV Golf and the PGA Tour’s new elevated-event prize money, $18 million already doesn’t sound like that much anymore. Not after we saw Dustin Johnson rack up $35 mill last year on the rival LIV Golf circuit.

Money is the only weapon the PGA Tour has in its arsenal. And the Saudis had way more, hence the PGA Tour-LIV golf agreement/merger/takeover/standoff. The top players like Scheffler and McIlroy and others already have such big bank accounts, they truly do play for the trophies, not the money. As Open Championship winner Brian Harman said, when asked what he’d splurge on if he happened to win the $18 million this week: “I got everything I need, man.”

The deciding factor. The tour’s Player of the Year honor may come down to this week. It’s a two-horse race between Scheffler and Rahm. Will winning a 30-man golf outing really make a difference in determining who had a better year? Rahm won a Masters, Scheffler won a Players Championship and had a Tiger-esque ball-striking year according to the stats.

“Scottie hit the ball as good if not better than Tiger hit it in 2000, which is the benchmark for all of us,” McIlroy said. “But Jon probably has a little more to show (for his season). Scottie has won twice, Jon has won four times. It depends what you value.”

The Atlanta 500: Last place this week pays $500,000. This year, $500k ranks 161st on the money list , a few dollars behind Cameron Percy. Eighty players won $2 million or more. Seven players topped $10 million … so far. Nice work if you can get it. In 1988, Curtis Strange became the first player to win $1 million in a season, a seemingly amazing feat at the time.

Golf has never been richer than it is now. The question remains: Is it better?

You make the call.

Is the new FedEx Cup scoring format good, bad or just different? We're about to find out

• Earned Evans Scholarship to attend Indiana University

ATLANTA -- Justin Thomas found it difficult holding a six-shot lead heading into the final round of the BMW Championship on Sunday, knowing he was expected to win with such a big advantage.

He prevailed -- but not before feeling the pressure of the lead being cut to two strokes on the back nine -- winning for the first time in 2019.

That victory vaulted him to the top of the FedEx Cup standings, and it means he has had to sleep on a two-shot advantage all week leading into the Tour Championship.

Gone is the points reset used in various forms over the past 12 years during the PGA Tour's FedEx Cup playoff system that concludes at East Lake Golf Club with the start of the Tour Championship on Thursday.

In its place is a new system designed to mimic the disparity in points with a strokes-based scoring plan that will see Thomas begin the tournament at the top of the scoreboard at 10 under par. Patrick Cantlay , who is second in points, will start at 8-under. And the list goes all the way down to No. 30 Jason Kokrak , who begins at even par.

"You know, coming into a Sunday, a two-shot lead is nothing,'' said Brooks Koepka , who will start in third place, three shots back of Thomas. "We all know that. So what's the difference between a two-shot lead starting the week? That seems very reasonable to make up, especially if you're going to play well.''

The PGA Tour ran "a million simulations,'' according to commissioner Jay Monahan, to determine the disparity in points to strokes, with the idea of making it simpler to follow for fans and players, while also eliminating any confusion about who the real winner is this week.

It is simply a different way to begin a tournament -- which is really more than that.

"This is a season-long competition,'' Monahan said. "It's not a tournament. The FedEx Cup is not a tournament.''

Gone is the 72-hole event that Tiger Woods captured a year ago. There will be 72 holes at East Lake, but it is a continuation of the FedEx Cup playoffs that began two weeks ago at Liberty National and continued last week at Medinah. The player with the lowest score over four days will get the most world ranking points but no trophy.

The winner of the FedEx Cup gets a very nice trophy -- and $15 million.

"I can always figure out a way to spend another $15 million,'' Koepka said. "But I don't tee it up to try and win millions of dollars. It's the same nerves.''

Koepka could be excused if he were miffed to not be atop the standings. He won the PGA Championship, finished second at the U.S. Open and Masters, and was fourth at The Open. He won the WGC-FedEx. St. Jude. And he is third?

Such is the volatility -- some would say flaws -- of the playoff system, which saw Patrick Reed win the Northern Trust and bolt to fourth from 50th; Thomas win the BMW and move to first; and Cantlay jump over Koepka, Reed and Rory McIlroy -- despite winning just once at the Memorial -- into the second spot.

McIlroy has two wins and 13 top-10s this year and yet he is behind Reed, who has a single win and only four top-10s.

"The year that I won the FedEx Cup [2016] was the worst ranking I went into the playoffs with,'' McIlroy said. "I was 36th going in. And I won Boston and won the Tour Championship and won. I've been No. 1 going into it twice and haven't won. You have to appreciate it for what it is.''

And some critics would suggest it is simply a money grab. To that end, FedEx increased its season-long bonus pool from $35 million to $60 million, with $15 million (up from $10 million) going to the winner and $5 million to second. The last-place finisher earns $395,000, and there are payouts all the way down to 150th ($60,000) on the final points list.

Since its inception in 2007, the FedEx Cup has undergone numerous alterations, mostly to the points structure. This year, for the first time, the playoffs consist of just three events, down from four. And the new staggered scoring is different, although it is meant to mirror what the FedEx Cup finale has always looked like, without benefit of a regular tournament.

Winning the FedEx Cup is not meant to be on the same hallowed ground as winning a major championship. And it might not be as meaningful as winning the Players Championship or a World Golf Championship event.

It is simply a way for the PGA Tour to put a bow on its long season.

"The FedEx Cup, it's different,'' Monahan said. "It's a way to wrap it all together, to crown a season-long champion.''

Masters Tournament

Augusta National Golf Club

A HISTORY OF EVERY HOLE AT AUGUSTA

EVERY HOLE AT AUGUSTA

Payday at East Lake

Here's the FedEx Cup prize money payout for each golfer at the 2022 Tour Championship

Icon Sportswire

For all the debate this summer about rapidly rising prize money payouts in professional golf, it was crazy to think what was on the line this week at the Tour Championship. The winner on Sunday at East Lake Golf Club was going to earn $18 million for his victory.

Let’s repeat this: $18 million.

By comparison, for their entire PGA Tour careers, Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer, winners of 25 majors and 135 tour titles, earned a combined $7,595,888.

And that winner, fittingly, was Rory McIlroy, the man who has served as the de facto face of the PGA Tour in 2022. As LIV Golf has risen to prominence and created a schism in men’s pro golf this summer, McIlroy has been the calming presence the PGA Tour needed, rallying some of the biggest names to try to keep the tour together.

McIlroy began the tournament six shots back of Scottie Scheffler, was 10 shots back after two holes (when he opened with a triple bogey, bogey), nine back after 36 holes and a six back to start the final round. But with rounds of 67-67-63-66 to get to 21 under, he rallied for a third career FedEx Cup title to the ones won in 2014 and 2019.

Technically speaking, the money on the line in Atlanta is not tournament prize money, but rather the payout for the $75 million FedEx Cup bonus pool that players are receiving for their finishes in the season-long points race. No player’s career earnings will increase as a result of their performance in the 2021-22 season finale.

MORE: 'What if' the PGA Tour used its staggered-stroke format since the inception of the FedEx Cup? Here's an alternate history

Here then is the prize money payout for each golfer in the final FedEx Cup standings after the conclusion of the Tour Championship. As with regular PGA Tour events, money is split equally among players if there are ties for different places in this last event of the 2021-’22 PGA Tour season. We’ll update this list shortly after Sunday’s finish to include individual names with their earnings.

East Lake Golf Club

One additional note: Every player in the FedEx Cup top 150 earns some distribution from the bonus pool. It’s why the list below has far more names than just the 30 competing in the Tour Championship.

MORE: The clubs Rory McIlroy used to win the Tour Championship

Win: Rory McIlroy, -21, $18,000,000

T-2: Scottie Scheffler, -20, $5,750,000

T-2: Sungjae Im, -20, $5,750,000

4: Xander Schauffele, -18, $4,000,000

T-5: Max Homa, -17, $2,750,000

T-5: Justin Thomas, -17, $2,750,000

T-7: Sepp Straka, -16, $1,750,000

T-7: Patrick Cantlay, -16, $1,750,000

9: Tony Finau, -15, $1,250,000

10: Tom Hoge, -14, $1,000,000

T-11: Joaquin Niemann, -13, $925,000

T-11: Hideki Matsuyama, -13, $925,000

T-13: Jordan Spieth, -12, $825,000

T-13: Aaron Wise, -12, $825,000

T-15: Viktor Hovland, -11, $710,000

T-15: Matt Fitzpatrick, -11, $710,000

T-15: J.T. Poston, -11, $710,000

T-15: Jon Rahm, -11, $710,000

19: Cameron Young, -10, $660,000

20: Cameron Smith, -9, $640,000

T-21: Brian Harman, -8, $600,000

T-21: Billy Horschel, -8, $600,000

T-21: Collin Morikawa, -8, $600,000

24: Sam Burns, -7, $565,000

25: Adam Scott, -4, $550,000

26: Corey Conners, -3, $540,000

27: K.H. Lee, -1, $530,000

28: Sahith Theegala, +1, $520,000

29: Scott Stallings, +3, $510,000

30: Will Zalatoris, $500,000

MORE: The top 10 money earners in FedEx Cup history

31: Shane Lowry, $250,000

32: Trey Mullinax, $236,000

33: J.J. Spaun, $228,000

34: Joohyung Kim, $221,000

35: Davis Riley, $214,000

36: Denny McCarthy, $211,000

37: Maverick McNealy, $209,000

38: Kevin Kisner, $208,000

39: Keith Mitchell, $207,000

40: Kurt Kitayama, $206,000

41: Lucas Glover, $205,000

42: Seamus Power, $204,000

43: Lucas Herbert, $203,000

44: Russell Henley, $202,000

45: Andrew Putnam, $201,000

46: Taylor Pendrith, $200,000

47: Cameron Tringale, $199,000

48: Tyrrell Hatton, $198,000

49: Mito Pereira, $197,000

50: Christiaan Bezuidenhout, $196,000

51: Luke List, $195,000

52: Emiliano Grillo, $194,000

53: Keegan Bradley, $193,000

54: Sebastián Muñoz, $192,000

55: Cam Davis, $191,000

56: Mackenzie Hughes, $190,000

57: Si Woo Kim, $189,000

58: Marc Leishman, $188,000

59: Brendan Steele, $187,000

60: Troy Merritt, $186,000

61: Adam Hadwin, $185,000

62: Tommy Fleetwood, $185,000

63: Chez Reavie, $185,000

64: Matt Kuchar, $185,000

65: Taylor Moore, $185,000

66: Chris Kirk, $175,000

67: Harold Varner III, $175,000

68: Alex Noren, $175,000

69: Alex Smalley, $175,000

70: Wyndham Clark, $175,000

MORE: The single biggest paydays for each of the PGA Tour's winningest golfers

71: Anirban Lahiri, $140,000

72: Lee Hodges, $140,000

73: John Huh, $140,000

74: Brendon Todd, $140,000

75: Gary Woodland, $140,000

76: Beau Hossler, $140,000

77: Lanto Griffin, $140,000

78: Brandon Wu, $140,000

79: Matthew NeSmith, $140,000

80: Chad Ramey, $140,000

81: Adam Long, $140,000

82: Dylan Frittelli, $140,000

83: Ryan Palmer, $140,000

84: David Lipsky, $140,000

85: Adam Schenk, $140,000

86: Daniel Berger, $130,000

87: Joel Dahmen, $130,000

88: Aaron Rai, $130,000

89: Stephan Jaeger, $130,000

90: Patrick Rodgers, $130,000

91: Russell Knox, $130,000

92: Adam Svensson, $130,000

93: Kevin Streelman, $130,000

94: Mark Hubbard, $130,000

95: Peter Malnati, $130,000

96: Danny Lee, $130,000

97: Michael Thompson, $130,000

98: Hayden Buckley, $130,000

99: C.T. Pan, $130,000

100: Justin Rose, $130,000

101: Martin Laird, $120,000

102: Sam Ryder, $120,000

103: Vince Whaley, $120,000

104: Tyler Duncan, $120,000

105: Jhonattan Vegas, $120,000

106: Nate Lashley, $120,000

107: James Hahn, $120,000

108: Greyson Sigg, $120,000

109: Robert Streb, $120,000

110: Scott Piercy, $120,000

111: Callum Tarren, $120,000

112: Max McGreevy, $120,000

113: Chesson Hadley, $120,000

114: Nick Watney, $120,000

115: Jason Day, $120,000

116: Doug Ghim, $120,000

117: Stewart Cink, $120,000

118: Kevin Tway, $120,000

119: Ryan Brehm, $120,000

120: Matthias Schwab, $120,000

121: Patton Kizzire, $120,000

122: Webb Simpson, $120,000

123: Rickie Fowler, $120,000

124: Nick Taylor, $120,000

125: Kramer Hickok, $120,000

126: Matt Wallace, $85,000

127: Austin Smotherman, $85,000

128: Justin Lower, $85,000

129: Doc Redman, $85,000

130: Danny Willett, $85,000

131: Kelly Kraft, $85,000

132: Nick Hardy, $85,000

133: Cameron Champ, $85,000

134: Brian Stuard, $85,000

135: Michael Gligic, $85,000

136: Harry Higgs, $85,000

137: Francesco Molinari, $85,000

138: Martin Trainer, $85,000

139: Erik van Rooyen, $85,000

140: Zach Johnson, $85,000

141: Rory Sabbatini, $85,000

142: Hank Lebioda, $85,000

143: Cameron Percy, $85,000

144: Henrik Norlander, $85,000

145: Andrew Novak, $85,000

146: Garrick Higgo, $85,000

147: Brice Garnett, $85,000

148: Jonathan Byrd, $85,000

149: Austin Cook, $85,000

150: Charley Hoffman, $85,000

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FedEx Cup Fall: Here's what PGA Tour pros think of the seven-event series (and it's not all good)

SAINT SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. – In reviewing this new version of the FedEx Cup Fall, the PGA Tour has to be thrilled with some of its winners: Sahith Theegala’s debut win in Napa; Tom Kim’s repeat in Las Vegas; Collin Morikawa's winless drought ends in Japan, the country of his ancestors; Erik van Rooyen’s back-nine 28 and emotional win in Cabo; Camilo Villegas’s feel-good story in Bermuda; and capped off by Ludvig Aberg’s 61-61 weekend here at the RSM Classic. The Sunday drama didn’t disappoint.

Underneath the surface, not everyone was so happy, particularly Jimmy Walker. who vented about how he had to keep battling for three additional months to keep his card. (He slipped out of the top 125 and will have conditional status playing out of the Nos. 126-150 category next season.)

Instead of the start to a new wrap-around season, the top 50 locked up their cards at the end of the regular season and no longer had to worry about falling behind in the full slate of tournaments. Rather, those without exempt status had to play on during a seven-event points chase to retain status for the 2024 season, which begins in January. (The Fall also lost two events — CJ Cup and Houston Open — both of which joined the FedEx Cup regular season, with CJ taking over title sponsorship of the Byron Nelson in Dallas and the Houston Open being promoted to a date in the spring.)

The top players finally got the off-season they’d been begging for and the rank-and-file still got several playing opportunities with purses of at least $8 million, full FedEx Cup points on the line and a chance to qualify for two early-season Signature Events for those who finishing in ‘The Next 10’ in the final point standings. As Peter Malnati put it, the FedEx Cup Fall was “fun and exciting, unless you’re one of the ones trying to keep your job and then it’s a strain.”

Peter Malnati lines up a putt on the third green during the second round of the 2023 Butterfield Bermuda Championship at Port Royal Golf Course in Southampton, Bermuda. (Photo: Marianna Massey/Getty Images)

In theory, there was something for players of all skill levels to play for – even the top 50 could earn additional years to their exempt status and qualify for tournaments such as the Masters and the Sentry with a win if not already in those fields – but was it a win-win for fans and sponsors too? Only a used car salesman could make that sell, and it begs the question: will the Tour continue to secure sponsors willing to foot the bill for tournaments where the big names barely played, if at all?

Several pros expressed their concern for the future of the fall schedule, which will become increasingly important for players fighting for status for the upcoming season.

“It's tough for me to see how it's going to be sustainable,” said Mark Hubbard, one of six players to compete in all seven fall tournaments. “For me, I think there was a noticeable difference in the tournaments and just like how much the course kind of rolled out the red carpet for us and whatnot, you know, just little stuff like courtesy cars or hotel room blocks or the food. Everything just kind of felt like they were probably trying to save a little bit of money because they're not getting, you know, the turnout, they're not getting the big names.”

He continued: “I feel bad for a lot of those tournaments like a Jackson (Mississippi, home of the Sanderson Farms Championship) that have worked so hard to become a great event and, you know, now they're gonna get zero of the top guys coming to their event, ever. It's just tough for me to see how those [$8 million] purses are going to stay high and, you know, those tournaments are going to want to continue to be big events and there's just no one coming there.”

“We have a lot of great events this time of year and if they want to host a PGA Tour event they should be allowed and the membership should support it,” veteran pro Ryan Armour said. “A lot of the top guys were looking for time off and if this is what they want, they got it.”

The lack of big names was most pronounced in Las Vegas, where several local pros elected to skip this year, and a sponsor exemption given to the LPGA Tour’s Lexi Thompson brought some much-needed attention.

“More guys would show up for Vegas, for Napa, it’s unfortunate for the events, for the fans and at least locally, it kind of sucks,” said Doug Ghim.

“Vegas is one of the biggest changes. Last year I wouldn’t have gotten in and this year I was in by 20 or something,” said Kramer Hickok.

But Davis Love III, who has hosted the RSM Classic in the fall for the last 14 years, said he’s seen several iterations of the fall during his 30-plus-year career that landed him in the World Golf Hall of Fame, and expects the fall portion of the schedule to continue to evolve.

“It hasn't looked the same in any five-year period for a long, maybe my whole career,” Love said last week. “Hopefully, it just continues to improve, they come up with new ideas … I think it's just going to continue to improve, but I don't know what that is.”

The Tour can only hope that whatever it dreams up next will generate a collection of stories and winners as good as this year.

More FedEx Cup Fall

Rsm classic takes over role of 'last chance saloon' as final fedex cup fall event.

How it works: FedExCup Playoffs

CROMWELL, CONNECTICUT - JUNE 23: The FedEx Cup is seen during the second round of the Travelers Championship at TPC River Highlands on June 23, 2023 in Cromwell, Connecticut. (Photo by Ben Jared/PGA TOUR via Getty Images)

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The FedExCup Playoffs brings unique drama in professional golf, with a starting field of 70 players whittled down to one FedExCup champion.

The Playoffs kicks off at the 70-player FedEx St. Jude Championship at TPC Southwind in Memphis, Tennessee, followed by the 50-player BMW Championship at Olympia Fields Country Club outside Chicago.

The final 30 players remaining will proceed to East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta for the TOUR Championship, which features a Starting Strokes format to reward the highest-ranked players on the season-long FedExCup standings, a cumulative race but with quadruple points awarded at the first two Playoffs events.

The player with the lowest score after 72 holes at East Lake, handicapped by Starting Strokes, will earn the FedExCup title.

What’s the FedExCup?

The 2022-23 PGA TOUR Season marks the 17th edition of the FedExCup, a season-long points competition which culminates with the FedExCup Playoffs, a series of three events to determine the FedExCup champion.

The 2022-23 PGA TOUR Regular Season featured 47 official FedExCup events beginning with the 2022 Fortinet Championship and running through the 2023 Wyndham Championship. TOUR members earn FedExCup points based on their finish at each tournament, with an emphasis placed on wins and high finishes.

The top 70 players in the FedExCup standings are eligible for the FedExCup Playoffs with the three events featuring a progressive cut with fields of 70, 50 and 30 players.

The first two FedExCup Playoffs events, the FedEx St. Jude Championship and BMW Championship, each offer quadruple points (2,000 points to the winner) compared to a standard Regular Season event (500 points to the winner).

The FedExCup Playoffs finale, the TOUR Championship, features FedExCup Starting Strokes, a staggered, strokes-based system that represents the final FedExCup standings, recognizing players for their Regular Season performance as well as their play in the first two FedExCup Playoffs events.

The total bonus pool for the FedExCup Playoffs is $75 million, with the FedExCup champion earning $18 million.

What’s at stake?

Here’s a closer look at what players are competing for during the FedExCup Playoffs and what’s at stake each week.

Note: In the event an eligible player is unable or chooses not to play, the field will be shortened and no alternates will be added. There are no cuts in FedExCup Playoffs events.

The top 70 in the FedExCup standings after the Wyndham Championship are guaranteed of retaining top-125 status for the following season. That status makes them exempt for all Full-Field Events and gives them a spot in THE PLAYERS.

Players who advanced to the FedEx St. Jude Championship but did not qualify for the BMW Championship – i.e. Nos. 51-70 in the FedExCup – will carry FedExCup points earned in the Regular Season and at the FedEx St. Jude Championship into the FedExCup Fall.

In the Fall, those players will try to earn one of the 10 spots available in next season’s first two Signature Events after The Sentry. Those spots will go to the top 10 players in the final FedExCup standings (after The RSM Classic) who are not yet exempt for those two Signature Events.

Making it to the BMW Championship carries the utmost importance for 2024.

Those who advance to the BMW Championship are guaranteed access to all Signature Events for 2024. Each Signature Event will feature approximately 70-80 of the TOUR’s top players competing for elevated purses and increased FedExCup points.

The eight Signature Events are as follows:

• The Sentry (Jan. 1-7) • AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am (Jan. 29-Feb. 4) • The Genesis Invitational (Feb. 12-18) • Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard (March 4-10) • RBC Heritage (April 15-21) • Wells Fargo Championship (May 6-12) • the Memorial Tournament presented by Workday (June 3-9) • Travelers Championship (June 17-23)

The Sentry, which will serve as the season-opener in 2024, previously invited tournament winners and players who qualified for the TOUR Championship. Tournament winners in 2023 are still exempt for the 2024 Sentry, as well.

Under the Starting Strokes format, the TOUR Championship features a staggered start based on players’ standing in the FedExCup.

Qualifying for the TOUR Championship carries a two-year exemption on TOUR. It also brings an invitation to the 2024 Masters and traditionally has carried exemptions into the U.S. Open and The Open, as well (those tournaments have yet to announce their exemption criteria for 2024).

The FedExCup champion receives a five-year TOUR exemption.

The player who finishes atop the TOUR Championship leaderboard is the FedExCup champion. Finishing first at East Lake brings an $18 million FedExCup Bonus. The runner-up receives $6.5 million, and everyone at East Lake earns at least $500,000.

TOUR Championship and FedExCup Starting Strokes

At the TOUR Championship, the player with the lowest stroke total over 72 holes when combined with his FedExCup Starting Strokes will be named FedExCup champion. He will also receive an official victory at the TOUR Championship.

The FedExCup points leader after the first two Playoffs events will begin the TOUR Championship at 10-under par. The No. 2 player will start at 8-under. The No. 3 player starts at 7-under; the No. 4 player starts at 6-under; the No. 5 player starts at 5-under. Players 6-10 start at 4-under; players 11-15 start at 3-under; players 16-20 start at 2-under; players 21-25 start at 1-under; and players 26-30 start at even par.

In the event there are tied players at any position going into the TOUR Championship, tied players will be awarded the same number of Starting Strokes for Round 1. For example, if two players are tied for second position, both players would start at 8 under and the No. 4 player would start at 6 under.

Any professional that is qualified for the TOUR Championship but unable to participate will not be awarded Starting Strokes, and Starting Stroke positions for the remaining players will not be reallocated. Any professional who is unable to play, is disqualified or withdraws for any reason will finish in last position for the TOUR Championship.

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Phil Mickelson unpacks fascinating difference between Champions Tour and PGA Tour

Phil Mickelson explained the differences between setups on the Champions Tour and PGA Tour.

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Phil Mickelson has looked at professional golf from both sides now.

Three weeks ago, Lefty was teeing it up in the first round of the PGA Tour’s FedEx Cup Playoffs. He missed the cut in Boston and was eliminated, ending his season.

Two weeks ago, Mickelson made his debut on the PGA Tour Champions. He torched Ozarks National with an opening 61, shot 22 under for the three-day event (tying the tour’s record) and won by four .

Mickelson is back on the PGA Tour for this week’s Safeway Open, the first event of the new season, where he opened with a one-under 71. After the round, he was asked: What’s the biggest difference between the two tours? His answer included some fascinating insight into a typical PGA Tour setup.

You should always hit driver, except in these 4 situations

“Well, I mean, the biggest difference are the pin placements that we see,” Mickelson said. “The ones out here [on the PGA Tour], they’re always put on a little bit of a knob or a crown or something where you’ve got to be defensive or the ball will run five or six feet by, whether it’s a chip or a putt. Whereas on the Champions Tour they’re like normal pins that we used to have in the ’90s and early 2000s so you feel like you can be a little bit more aggressive.”

We’ve heard Tour pros talk plenty about these nuances of course setup before, but Mickelson is in a unique position to comment on 1. The way PGA Tour setups are now, 2. The way Champions Tour setups are now and 3. The way PGA Tour setups used to be. His comments serve as a reminder that professional golfers, like athletes in every sport, are continuing to get significantly better. In order to keep scores reasonable, Tour setups aren’t just getting longer — they’re getting harder, everywhere . Tee to green.

“In every Tour event they’re set up to prevent the scores from going too low. They’re always in little tricky spots. Even though if it doesn’t show on TV, there’s always deflection going on,” Mickelson said. “On the Champions Tour there wasn’t any of that, which was fun for me to play every hole aggressive and attack.”

Mickelson has shown in recent events that he still has the game to contend on either tour; he finished T2 at the WGC-FedEx St. Jude in early August for his second top-3 finish of the PGA Tour season (the other came in a third-place finish at Pebble Beach). But can he contend better on some Tour setups than others? Probably. On Thursday, he hit just five fairways at the Safeway Open, serving as a reminder that Mickelson’s driver could still use a bit of straightening.

That driver, Mickelson’s playing form and his general ethos about golf course difficulty are all going to collide next week at Winged Foot for what promises to be an absolutely brutish U.S. Open test. The event remains the white whale for Mickelson, a six-time runner up.

“Yeah, I’ve certainly been thinking about it a lot,” he admitted. “But I’ve got to play well, right? So I’ve got to play well this week to get a little bit of momentum and confidence heading into next week.”

Mickelson is 50 now, but that doesn’t mean he’s slowing down. After all, managing a second tour schedule can’t make things any easier. Winning, though, still takes care of just about everything — no matter what the pin placements look like.

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Latest in news, why tiger woods' masters might have just gotten a whole lot tougher, masters 2024: new first-round tee times posted after weather delay, masters weather: first round delayed due to storms in augusta, masters live coverage: how to watch the 2024 masters on thursday, dylan dethier.

Dylan Dethier is a senior writer for GOLF Magazine/GOLF.com. The Williamstown, Mass. native joined GOLF in 2017 after two years scuffling on the mini-tours. Dethier is a graduate of Williams College, where he majored in English, and he’s the author of 18 in America , which details the year he spent as an 18-year-old living from his car and playing a round of golf in every state.

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Viktor Hovland: From FedExCup glory to PGA Tour struggles - what's gone wrong for Ryder Cup star in 2024?

Viktor Hovland won the PGA Tour's FedExCup and was closing in on the world No 1 ranking in 2023, along with helping Europe claim Ryder Cup glory and earning $38m in prize money, but has struggled so far this year; watch The Masters live on Sky Sports

@MarcBazeley

Wednesday 10 April 2024 10:36, UK

There is little which encapsulates the frustration of golf more than the difference between Viktor Hovland's end to the 2023 PGA Tour season and his start to 2024.

The Norwegian seemed to have the world at his feet as he capped the Tour year with a maiden FedExCup triumph, having also won the Memorial Tournament and the BMW Championship, and went on to help Europe reclaim the Ryder Cup by winning a joint-second-highest 3.5 points from his matches in Rome - with only Rory McIlroy earning more.

Yet the now-world No 6 has failed to carry those performances over to 2024, with his showing at last month's Players Championship, where he eventually finished tied for 62nd on one under for the tournament after a closing round of 74, underlining the struggles he has faced prior to teeing up at Augusta National for The Masters this week.

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Nevertheless, he is adamant those early-season woes after embarking on making major changes to his game during the winter have only served to fire him up for The Masters, where he held the co-lead after the first round in 2023.

"If I play badly, that almost motivates you more than when I'm playing good," Hovland said. "When I'm playing good it's like 'okay, I know what I'm doing, I can take tomorrow off' or 'I know that I'm playing good, I can just chill for a little bit' or whatever.

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"You become more complacent, but I would say the moment I play bad or make a couple of mistakes, that motivates me more to come back better and that's definitely how I've felt in the last couple of months.

"The frustrating part is when you're trying to figure things out and you don't see the progress, and you don't know if this is the right road ahead, and that's when you have to think more about the process rather than just shutting that off and committing to it."

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A cursory look at the 26-year-old's results for the year so far tells its own story. After scoring nine top-10 finishes last year, including tying for seventh at The Masters, and tying for second at the PGA Championship, Hovland has yet to finish higher than 19th in 2024.

His performance at TPC Sawgrass during The Players was way below his showing at the corresponding event in 2023 when he tied for third, and that 19th place at the Genesis Invitational is the only tournament so far where he has bettered his finish in it last year.

Sky Sports Golf analyst Tim Barter, who coached former major winners Seve Ballesteros and Darren Clarke, cited the ongoing process of Hovland rebuilding his swing under the tutelage of former PGA Tour player Grant Waite, having split with previous coach Joe Mayo, as a big reason behind his dip.

"He gave a lot of credit to his coach, Joe Mayo, through the season for getting him to those new heights, particularly improving his short game which used to be a weakness and became a strength," Barter told Sky Sports .

"Somewhat surprisingly, in between the two seasons, we heard he'd fired Joe Mayo and gone to work with Grant Waite...and he's now in a transition between the swing Mayo built and the swing Grant Waite is trying to help him achieve.

"The stats reflect he's really struggling at the moment."

Beyond the headline results, a deeper dive into the numbers reveals just how alarming Hovland's drop-off has been in several areas of his game.

Prior to last week's Valero Texas Open, his strokes gained total had dipped from the eighth-best on the PGA Tour of 1.648 to 119th on -0.177 following The Players, while his scoring average slumped from a fourth highest of 69.123 per round to 72.098 and ranked 160th.

Viktor Hovland 2023 vs 2024 on the PGA Tour*

In terms of specific parts of his game, Hovland's performances off the tee saw him drop from fifth to 37th in total driving and 40th to 86th in driving accuracy since The Players.

His iron play has suffered too, dropping from 10th to 105th in terms of strokes gained approach, and tied 10th to tied 69th for proximity to the hole. On the green, his one-putt percentage has gone down from 42.11 (22nd) to 40.94 (56th). Most damningly, he entered April 181st out of 181 qualifying PGA Tour players in strokes gained around the green.

Given Hovland's struggles, it begs the question: why make such a significant change after a year which saw him crowned as PGA Tour champion, earn around $38m in prize money and be in contention for glory in majors, not to mention have a realistic shot of cracking the hegemony of Scottie Scheffler, Rory McIlroy and LIV Golf defector Jon Rahm in the Official World Golf Ranking top three?

"In Viktor's case, you have to imagine 'Okay, I'm world No 4 [ahead of The Players] and I want to be world No 1'," Barter said. "Also, he wants to win major championships which he hasn't done yet and maybe he felt he didn't have the tools to do so, so he was prepared to take the risk and reinvent his golf swing.

"It was an unorthodox swing, but, boy, was it effective last year. He's working away to try to make it more orthodox to become an even better player and go on to become the multiple major champion he wants to be.

"It's a risk and whether he achieves it in the long run we'll have to wait to see. Let's hope so, because right now he's in a bad place as far as his golf swing is concerned."

Hovland has not been seen on a golf course in competitive action since The Players, skipping the following three tournaments on the PGA Tour, and spent part of Monday's practice session ahead of his fifth Masters appearance working with California-based swing guru Dana Dahlquist.

He remains stoic about his struggles in 2024 and is determined to keep open-minded about the best way ahead for him as he seeks a solution which will allow him to become the player he wants to be.

"I'm still looking for some opinions out there, but I feel like I'm on a good track right now and we'll see where that takes us," Hovland said. "Sometimes, the game of golf, you try to do the same every day but things aren't the same every day when you go to the golf course.

"I took a huge break last year and when I came back everything was different. I had to find my way back to where I think I'm going to play my best golf.

"Even at the end of last year, I was playing great but I got a lot out of my game and it didn't necessarily feel sustainable - but it's not like consciously I went in and said 'hey, we're going to change everything up'.

"I'm always trying to learn, but I felt like I'd got to what the pinnacle of my golf swing was able to do last year. Just when I keep looking back, my swings from 2020 and 2021, I had more control of the golf ball, in my opinion."

When is The Masters on Sky Sports?

Wall-to-wall coverage from the tournament begins at 2pm over the first two rounds on Thursday April 11 and Friday April 12, with Featured Group action and regular updates from around the course available to enjoy on Sky Sports Golf until the global broadcast window begins at 8pm.

There will be lots of extra action throughout all four days via the red button on Sky Sports Golf, along with Sky Q and Sky Glass, providing plenty of bonus feeds and allowing you to follow players' progress through various parts of Augusta's famous layout.

Sky Sports Golf will show extended build-up content over the weekend and occasional live updates from the course before the global broadcast window starts at 8pm for the third round and 7pm for the final day, with early action available throughout via the red button.

Who will win The Masters? Watch live from April 11-14 exclusively on Sky Sports. Live coverage begins with Featured Groups on Thursday April 11 from 2pm on Sky Sports Golf. Stream the PGA Tour, DP World Tour, majors and more with NOW.

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Tickets on sale for 2024 FedEx St. Jude Championship

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (WMC) - The FedEx St. Jude Championship is heading back to Memphis for 2024.

This year’s event will serve as the opening for the FedExCup Playoffs and will take place from August 14 to 18.

The City of Memphis has held a PGA TOUR event every year since 1958, and 2024 will mark Memphis’ third year hosting a Playoffs event.

The event will feature the top 70 players in the FedExCup Playoffs and Eligibility Points List.

Lucas Glover won the event in 2023.

Players will gather at the more than 200-acre Tournament Players Club course at Southwind in southeast Shelby County.

Click here to secure your tickets.

Daily Grounds tickets for the 2024 FedEx St. Jude Championship are available Wednesday through Sunday, with tickets to competition rounds starting at $72 plus tax and fees.

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