FedEx Cup Playoffs: Scheffler to defend, Ryder Cup at stake

PGA Tour Playoffs Begin: Scheffler Chasing Title

The PGA Tour playoffs begin this Thursday with the FedEx St. Jude Championship in Memphis, Tennessee. This tournament is the first of three consecutive ones that will determine the FedEx Cup champion. Almost all of the top 70 golfers in the season’s points standings will be looking to surpass the world number one, Scottie Scheffler, who will try to become the first back-to-back FedEx Cup winner at the Tour Championship in Atlanta from August 21-24.

It’s the time of year when everyone wants to be at their best and play their best.

Justin Thomas

Scheffler, despite dealing with a hand injury at the beginning of the season, has achieved four victories, including wins at the PGA Championship and The Open.

FedEx St. Jude Championship

• Date: Thursday to Sunday
• Location: TPC Southwind, Memphis, Tennessee
• Prize: 20 million dollars (3.6 million to the winner)
• Defending Champion: Hideki Matsuyama

The top 70 golfers in the FedEx Cup points standings for the season return to TPC Southwind for the first leg of the playoffs, with the exception of Masters champion Rory McIlroy, who will be absent from the tournament. McIlroy, comfortably in second place in the points standings, has secured his spots in the BMW Championship and the Tour Championship. He has achieved three top-10 finishes in eight appearances at TPC Southwind, although he finished in 68th place last year. The urgency is greater for golfers who are just inside or outside the top 50, such as Xander Schauffele and Tony Finau, who have reached the Tour Championship in eight consecutive seasons. Schauffele, who battled a rib injury earlier in the season, is 42nd in the points standings, while Finau is number 60. Finau needs at least a tie for 20th to get into the top 50. Other golfers in the “bubble” to qualify for the BMW Championship are: Harry Hall (No. 44), Akshay Bhatia (No. 45), Si Woo Kim (No. 46), Jake Knapp (No. 47), Jordan Spieth (No. 48), Wyndham Clark (No. 49), Min Woo Lee (No. 50), J.T. Poston (No. 51), Kurt Kitayama (No. 52), Bud Cauley (No. 53), Joe Highsmith (No. 54), and Aaron Rai (No. 55). Gary Woodland (No. 72), Adam Scott (No. 90), Tom Kim (No. 94), Max Homa (No. 111), and Sahith Theegala (No. 146) are some of the most prominent names that failed to qualify for the playoffs.

BMW Championship

Date: August 14-17
Location: Caves Valley Golf Club, Owings Mills, Maryland
Prize: $20 million ($3.6 million to the winner)
Defending Champion: Keegan Bradley The top 50 golfers in the points standings after the FedEx St. Jude Championship will advance to the second stage of the playoffs and earn spots in each of the eight signature events in 2026. The BMW Championship returns to Caves Valley Golf Club for the first time since 2021. Last time, Patrick Cantlay defeated Bryson DeChambeau in a dramatic six-hole sudden-death playoff. Caves Valley Golf Club, located about 20 miles northwest of Baltimore, opened in 1991. It hosted the 2002 U.S. Senior Open and the 2007 Palmer Cup. The course installed a SubAir system on its greens in recent years and lengthened hole number 1. Seven golfers finished at 20-under or better four years ago; Sungjae Im finished third at 23-under and McIlroy was fourth at 22-under.

Tour Championship

Date: August 21-24
Location: East Lake Golf Club, Atlanta
Prize: 40 million dollars (10 million to the winner)
Defending Champion: Scottie Scheffler

For the first time since 2019, the PGA Tour is abandoning its staggered-start format for the Tour Championship, which will be a traditional 72-hole stroke play tournament, with the top 30 golfers all starting at par. The winner of the Tour Championship will earn $10 million, regardless of the golfer’s position in the points standings. The runner-up earns 5 million, third place receives 3.7 million, fourth place takes 3.2 million, and fifth place goes home with 2.75 million. The last-place golfer in the Tour Championship receives $355,000.

TPC Southwind Renovations

TPC Southwind underwent a massive renovation after last year’s tournament, with 18 new green complexes and tee boxes that were repaved. There are also new chipping and putting practice areas. Scheffler mentioned that TPC Southwind did a good job of maintaining its essence and not making too many changes during the renovation.