PGA Tour nixes starting strokes advantage for leaders at championship
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DUBLIN, Ohio — The PGA Tour voted to overhaul the season-ending Tour Championship so that all 30 players start from scratch and the low score on a tougher East Lake course wins the FedEx Cup.
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The change is effective this year, with more tweaks still in the works. The announcement Tuesday evening followed a PGA Tour board vote and a meeting of the Player Advisory Council that has been trying for more than six months to find a solution.
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The primary goal was to get rid of the staggered start that none of the players seemed to like.
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Since 2019, the leader of the FedEx Cup going to East Lake started at 10-under par before the tournament even began. That gave him a two-shot lead over the No. 2 player, and a staggered from there until the last five players who qualified for the 30-man field were at even par.
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Now it will effectively be a 72-hole shootout — everyone starts at even par, just like any other tournament — with FedEx Cup going to the winner.
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'We want the Tour Championship to be the hardest tournament to qualify for and the FedEx Cup trophy the most difficult to win,' said Scottie Scheffler, the No. 1 player in the world who won his first FedEx Cup title last year. He serves on the PAC.
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'Shifting the Tour Championship to a more straight-up format with a tougher course setup makes it easier for fans to follow and provides a more challenging test for players — which brings out the best competition.'
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Still to be announced is the prize fund. Scheffler received a $25 million bonus for winning the FedEx Cup last year. The tour indicated the bonus money would be distributed more evenly to account for all 30 players — regardless of their position in the standings — have the same chance of winning.
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Scheffler won last year at 30-under par for a four-shot victory over Collin Morikawa. Scheffler, the No. 1 seed the last three years, had a raw total of 264. Morikawa shot 262, but he was the No. 7 seed and thus gave Scheffler a six-shot head start.
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The tour said it leaned on feedback from its fans to help determine what would make the most compelling finale.
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'The Player Advisory Council led a thorough process to respond to what our fans are asking for: The most competitive golf in the world, played for the highest stakes, in the most straightforward and engaging format,' PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan said.
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