Fed Ex Cup - The next big thing in golf

Golf’s new schedule in 2007 encourages the PGA Tour’s pros to compete to the very end of the season, rather than take a break after the last major (the PGA Championship) is played in early August.

In years past, the PGA Championship was the last stop for many elite golfers until the season started again in earnest in January. Five more tournaments are usually scheduled after the PGA Championship. The PGA Championship, in the past, was a golfer’s last chance to gain exemption status for the Tour with a victory in that tournament.

The advent of the FedEx Cup gives golfers additional opportunities to gain exempt status and establish themselves as the true elite of the game.

The FedEx Cup encourages the players to stick around to the very end, finishing the season with a four-tournament playoff system. The qualifiers for the playoffs are determined by a points system, starting with the Mercedes-Benz Championship in early January and culminating with the Wyndham Championship (Aug. 16-19).

Players who are regular members of the PGA Tour earn points. Points are earned in every tournament, with the greater amount earned depending on where the golfer places. The top 144 points leaders following the Wyndham Championship qualify for the playoffs.

After the Wyndham Championship, points for all eligible players are reset. The first-place regular-season points leader gets an extra 100,000 points, second place gets 99,000, and the scale goes all the way to the 144th golfer, who gets an extra 84,700 points. The top 144 golfers after this reset qualify for the playoffs.

This points system was designed to have the best opportunity for the top 144 golfers to qualify based on their entire 2007 performance.

The playoff event consists of four tournaments: Barclays Classic (Aug. 23-26), Deutsche Bank Championship (Aug. 31-Sept. 3), BMW Championship (Sept. 6-9) and culminating with THE TOUR Championship (Sept. 13-16). Players continue to earn FedEx Cup points based on their placement in these tournaments.

The player with the most points after THE TOUR Championship will capture the FedEx Cup title and $10 million of a $35 million bonus purse. The winner of THE TOUR Championship will not necessarily be the winner of the FedEx Cup because of the points system.

The winner of the FedEx Cup will also gain a five-year exemption on the PGA Tour.

With this new system, the Barclays Classic, Deutsche Bank Championship, BMW Championship and THE TOUR Championship carry much more significance than in years past. Here is a brief rundown of the FedEx Cup playoff series tournaments:

Barclays Classic – The top 144 FedEx Cup points leaders after the points-reset, with a 36-hole cut to the top 70 players with ties. The Barclays Classic is played at the Westchester Country Club in Rye, New York. Many fans still refer to the tournament as its traditional name: The Westchester, although it was most recently named the Buick Classic. The tournament is usually played in June but it was shifted to August this year to be part of the FedEx Cup playoff series. The total purse is $7 million with $1.26 million going to the winner.

Deutsche Bank Classic – Field narrowed to the top 120 points leaders after the Barclays Classic, with 36-hole cut to the top 70 players with ties. The Deutsche Bank Classic, played at the Tournament Players Club in Norton, Mass., is a tournament that is annually scheduled for Labor Day Weekend. Unlike most tournaments, its final day is scheduled on a Monday to coincide with Labor Day. The purse is $7 million with $1.26 million going to the winner.

BMW Championship – Field narrowed to the top 70 points leaders after the Deutsche Bank Classic, without a 36-hole cut (every golfer plays the four rounds). The first-ever BMW Championship replaces the long-standing Western Open on the PGA Tour. The Western Open (first scheduled in 1899) was the oldest tournament on the PGA Tour and third-oldest on the schedule behind the British Open (1860) and U.S. Open (1895). The BMW Championship this year will be played at the Cog Hill Golf and Country Club in Lemont, Ill. The tournament will rotate each year in the Midwest at courses in Illinois, Indiana, Missouri and Minnesota. Similar to the previous two FedEx Cup playoff tournaments – the Barclays and Deutsche Bank Classic – the purse is $7 million with the winner earning $1.26 million.

THE TOUR Championship – Field narrowed to the top 30 points leaders after the BMW Championship, without a 36-hole cut. THE TOUR Championship moves from its traditional November date to mid-September as the culminating tournament of the inaugural FedEx Cup. The tournament will be played at the East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta, Ga. The purse is $6.5 million with the winner taking home $1.17 million. If for any reason a player among the Top 30 can not compete, he will not be replaced.

Thinking about visiting one of the events in the Fed Ex Cup? Tickets for all these events can be purchased online. Just do a search in your favorite search engine or if you are looking for cheap event tickets, you may also want to visit Bigdaddytickets.com, which is a web site that we are familiar with and trust.

Once the final 144 playoff qualifiers are set heading into the Barclays Classic, no alternatives will be allowed. A player among the top 144 can skip a playoff event prior to THE TOUR Championship but does so at the risk of losing their standing on the points list.

The drama continues after the FedEx Cup. The top 30 FedEx Cup points leaders automatically qualify for the FedEx Cup in 2008. The remaining 95 qualifiers (125 qualifiers overall) will be determined by the PGA Tour’s 2007 official money list after the Fall Series, seven official events that follow THE TOUR Championship.

This further establishes the PGA’s attempt to keep the competitive juices flowing among the game’s elite from the start of the season to the very end. The scheduling and points implication improve the quality of the game and whets the fans’ appetite for golf at its best, week in and week out.

Thank you to Javier Morales for this Fed Ex Cup article

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