Tiger Woods blew away the field at the BMW Championship but now the points are reset heading into the final PGA TOUR Playoff event – The TOUR Championship.
The PGA set out to make the final event, and the FedEx Cup series, more exciting for fans. The big change was not resetting the points until this week, where in previous years the season points were reset at the start of the playoffs. That move rewarded both the season’s top performers and the playoff stars. What it also did was erase the repeat of Vijay Singh’s cake walk at last year’s TOUR Championship – not that Singh didn’t deserve it after winning the first two events.
The change gives the top five players the best chance at hoisting the FedEx Cup, and the $10 million check. With a win at The TOUR Championship, Tiger Woods, Steve Stricker, Jim Furyk, Zach Johnson and Heath Slocum would be crowned FedEx Cup champion. From there, seeds 6-10 have a great chance of taking home the biggest prize money in golf.
But, as with any tournament, you have to show up. Here are the players that made the biggest moves in the playoffs to earn a spot at The TOUR Championship:
Heath Slocum – started the playoffs in 124th and, thanks to a win at The Barclays, has moved up to fifth
Padraig Harrington – hit his stride late in the season and moved from 66th to sixth
Marc Leishman – squeezed into the top 70 after the Deutsche Bank Championship and finished second at the BMW Championship to gett o 16th place
Scott Verplank – was in 61st place and has moved to eighth
Ernie Els – played great at The Barclays (t2) and put himself at 22nd from 47th
Jason Dufner – a tie for second at Deutsche Bank Championship moved him to 10th from 42nd
Final push for FedEx Cup
The PGA set out to make the final event, and the FedEx Cup series, more exciting for fans. The big change was not resetting the points until this week, where in previous years the season points were reset at the start of the playoffs. That move rewarded both the season’s top performers and the playoff stars. What it also did was erase the repeat of Vijay Singh’s cake walk at last year’s TOUR Championship – not that Singh didn’t deserve it after winning the first two events.
The change gives the top five players the best chance at hoisting the FedEx Cup, and the $10 million check. With a win at The TOUR Championship, Tiger Woods, Steve Stricker, Jim Furyk, Zach Johnson and Heath Slocum would be crowned FedEx Cup champion. From there, seeds 6-10 have a great chance of taking home the biggest prize money in golf.
But, as with any tournament, you have to show up. Here are the players that made the biggest moves in the playoffs to earn a spot at The TOUR Championship: