ATLANTA – In contrast to many PGA Tour golfers, Masters champion Rory McIlroy has not averse to the format of the beginning stroke used within the Tour Championships previously six seasons.
Within the format launched in 2019, the leaders of FedEx Cup Factors launched the season-end occasion with a minimum of two strokes of 10 below, in comparison with everybody else on the sphere. The second-placed gamers in factors began in third place with 8 below and seven below and fourth place with 6 below.
Even Scotty Scheffler, the world No. 1, who captured the primary FedEx Cup in 2024 below the age of 10, was referred to as the playoff format “Foolish.”
This 12 months, all 30 golfers on the sphere at East Lake Golf Membership will begin evenly within the conventional 72-hole match.
“I is perhaps a part of the minority,” McIlroy mentioned Tuesday. “I by no means disliked the beginning stroke, and I assumed one of the best participant of the season needs to be coming right here.
Like this season, Schaeffler received his fifth BMW Championship final week, successful the third and fourth majors within the PGA Championship and Open.
“We will additionally debate whether or not Scotty is beginning his stroke this week and a two-shot lead. Maybe it isn’t sufficient contemplating what he is executed this 12 months and the lead he is coming into this week on the FedEx Cup,” he mentioned.
The PGA Tour redistributed the bonus pool and rewarded golfers who labored nicely within the common season. Schaeffler has already collected $23 million in bonuses this 12 months, together with $10 million in pre-playoff factors standings, $8 million from the Comcast Enterprise Tour high 10 and $5 million main factors after the BMW Championship.
The Eastlake line has one other $40 million this week. This consists of $10 million for the winner.
Schaeffler tries to develop into the primary back-to-back winner of the FedEx Cup.
“I am certain everybody besides Scotty Schaeffler loves the truth that all of us begin with equal arenas,” mentioned Tommy Fleetwood of England. “It is most likely extra thrilling for gamers to return right here. I do know that everybody within the discipline of ranges is aware of they’ve an ideal week, win tournaments and clearly develop into extremely joyful right here.”
When the PGA Tour introduced the adjustments in Could, Schaeffler mentioned the tour championship was to make it “probably the most tough match of qualifying” and the “probably the most tough victory” of the FedEx Cup trophy.
2017 FedEx Cup champion Justin Thomas mentioned eliminating the beginning stroke will give extra golfers an opportunity to win on the sphere.
“There’s an opportunity that it is an unimaginable week in that sense (it) you may need 15, 20 guys who’ve an opportunity to win on Sunday, and that is fairly cool,” Thomas mentioned. “It is nice, however you simply play the match, and I believe within the beginning stroke it was very depending on the place you have been.
“In lots of instances, aside from only a handful of men, your week was determined in a short time, not the primary 9 holes, not the primary day.
On the PGA Tour, this season’s tour championship was described as “bridge 12 months.” Which means that extra adjustments might happen quickly. This tour explored the concept of spinning tournaments on different golf programs and the match play bracket that determines the champions throughout the season.
“There have been so many different issues on the desk,” McIlroy mentioned. “Matchplay is on the desk and it has been canned this 12 months. It’d come again to conversations for the subsequent 12 months or the next 12 months. I believe it is tough to regulate gamers to play stroke play each week, however the finish of the season match will probably be decided by matchplay.
