Tour Championship: Scheffler and the 29 rivals for the title and $40M

The Tour Championship: 30 Golfers in Pursuit of Glory

Atlanta is gearing up for this week’s Tour Championship, where $40 million will be at stake at East Lake Golf Club. The competition presents itself with a level playing field, as the 30 participating golfers will start on Thursday with par. Even the world number one, Scottie Scheffler, who has won in half of his last five participations, including the recent BMW Championship, will not have an advantage this time. Unlike last year, where Scheffler started with a two-stroke lead before winning his first FedEx Cup, this time everyone has the same opportunities.

Any of the 30 have the opportunity to win the FedEx Cup this year, which is obviously very different from what it has been in previous years. With that, it’s a clean slate for everyone, and it’s a great opportunity for one of the guys who maybe weren’t a big part of the season to raise their hand and have the chance to win the grand prize at the end of the year.

Rory McIlroy

Here’s a look at the 30 golfers who will compete in the Tour Championship:

• Scottie Scheffler

Scheffler, with his recent performance, is the favorite. With five victories this season, he will try to become the first two-time FedEx Cup champion and one of the three golfers with multiple FedEx titles (along with Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy). DataGolf.com gives Scheffler a 31.4% chance of winning this week.

• Rory McIlroy

McIlroy, after his return to the tour after almost a month, tied for 12th place in the BMW Championship with 3 under par. He is the only three-time winner at East Lake, in 2016, 2019 and 2022, and has finished in the top 10 in nine of his previous 11 appearances. If anyone can keep up with Scheffler at East Lake, that could be McIlroy.

• Ludvig Åberg

After a regular season, the former Texas Tech star excelled just in time for the FedEx Cup playoffs and the upcoming Ryder Cup. He tied for ninth and seventh place in the first two FedEx Cup playoff events, respectively. Åberg finished 16th in his Tour Championship debut in 2024.

• Tommy Fleetwood

The English golfer came close to securing his first PGA Tour victory in Memphis, Tennessee, but couldn’t close the deal in the final round. He tied for third at the FedEx St. Jude Championship and fourth at the BMW Championship. There has never been a first-time winner at the Tour Championship since its inception in 1987.

• Viktor Hovland

Just two years ago, Hovland dominated the field for a five-stroke victory at the Tour Championship. His career seemed poised to take off. Since then, he has only won once, at this year’s Valspar Championship, and continues to tweak his swing. Hovland tied for seventh at the BMW Championship and was third in the field in approach, so maybe he’s figured it out again.

• Russell Henley

The former University of Georgia star signed a 62 under par in the final round of last season’s Tour Championship, the lowest score of the week on the renovated course. It was enough for Henley to tie for fourth place, his second top-five finish in the tournament. His ball striking and precision off the tee could make him a contender again.

• Harris English

Another Georgia native who will have fans cheering him on this week, English returns to the Tour Championship for the first time since 2021. After undergoing surgery to repair a tear in the labrum of his right hip in 2022, English is enjoying the best season of his career, which includes a victory at the Farmers Insurance Open and runner-up finishes at the PGA Championship and The Open.

• Sam Burns

Burns tied for fourth at 10-under at the BMW Championship, his best result since losing in a playoff to Ryan Fox at the RBC Canadian Open in early June. Burns is 16th in the Ryder Cup points standings, so he likely needs another good performance this week to have any chance of being chosen by the captain. He finished in the top 12 in his last two appearances at East Lake, where he will thrive again on the Bermuda greens.

• Collin Morikawa

For the most part, it’s been a season to forget for Morikawa, who has only had two top-10 finishes since his second-place finish at the Arnold Palmer Invitational in early March. The two-time major champion is eighth in the Ryder Cup standings, so he may want to play well to erase any doubts about his form. He was runner-up at the 2024 Tour Championship with 22 under par in 72 holes.

• Patrick Cantlay

Given his 5-2-1 record in the Ryder Cup and success in the Presidents Cup, Cantlay is among the favorites to secure one of captain Keegan Bradley’s six picks. Another good performance at East Lake would certainly help his chances. The 2021 FedEx Cup champion finished 17th at 7-under in last year’s Tour Championship.

• Justin Thomas

JT hasn’t finished in the top 20 in his last four tour appearances, but returning to East Lake could help him turn things around. The 2017 FedEx Cup champion finished in the top seven in each of his first seven appearances at East Lake; he tied for 14th after the renovation last year.

• Robert MacIntyre

The Scotland native was a Ryder Cup rookie in 2023, but has become one of Europe’s most successful golfers in the last two years. He won twice on the tour last season and was runner-up at the U.S. Open and last week’s BMW Championship, which he led after each of the first three rounds.

• Harry Hall

The English golfer, who played college golf at UNLV, has been one of the world’s hottest players over the last four months, finishing inside the top 28 in each of his last 11 starts. He moved from 45th to 26th in the FedEx Cup standings after finishing sixth at the BMW. Hall, who is second on tour in strokes gained: putting (.910), is making a late push for the European Ryder Cup team.

• Sepp Straka

Straka missed last week’s BMW Championship for undisclosed personal reasons. He is seventh in points, just behind Irishman Shane Lowry, in the European points standings for the Ryder Cup. Straka cannot earn points this week, so he will likely have to rely on one of captain Luke Donald’s picks, which seems like a certainty.

• J.J. Spaun

The U.S. Open winner has already qualified for a spot on the U.S. Ryder Cup team, so he doesn’t have much pressure in his first appearance at East Lake. Spaun is sixth on the tour in strokes gained: approach (.758) and seventh in strokes gained: total (1.185). His previous best result in the FedEx Cup Playoffs was 34th in 2022.

• Cameron Young

After securing his first PGA Tour victory at the Wyndham Championship, Young followed up by finishing fifth at the FedEx St. Jude Championship and eleventh at the BMW Championship. He is among the tour leaders in driving distance and ranks in the top 10 in putting, which could make him a tempting Ryder Cup pick for Bradley.

• Ben Griffin

After tying for ninth and 12th place in the first two playoff events, Griffin is making it increasingly difficult for Bradley to ignore him. A two-time winner on the tour this season, Griffin is ninth in Ryder Cup points. It’s his debut at the Tour Championship.

• Maverick McNealy

Another American golfer trying to get Bradley’s attention, McNealy tied for 28th and was solo third in the first two playoff events, respectively. He has certainly made a strong case to be on the Ryder Cup team with seven top 10s and 10 top 25s in 23 tour starts. It’s his first appearance at the Tour Championship.

• Justin Rose

Rose, the 2018 FedEx Cup champion, began the playoffs in 25th place in the standings, but jumped to fourth after winning the FedEx St. Jude Championship and tying for 30th at the BMW. He secured his seventh Ryder Cup appearance by qualifying on points.

• Brian Harman

Harman tied for 22nd and 19th in the first two playoff events, and he might need another strong finish to bolster his case to make the Ryder Cup team. The former Open Championship winner is 12th in points, so he’s clearly on the bubble. His ball-striking prowess and clutch putting are factors in his favor.

• Akshay Bhatia

After an inconsistent campaign in 2025, Bhatia has played better in the playoffs, tying for sixth at the FedEx St. Jude Championship and 26th at the BMW. He finished in 26th place with 3 under par in his first Tour Championship last year.

• Corey Conners

Conners is one of the best iron players in the world, but his game has been very inconsistent lately. He tied for 50th in Memphis and was solo 39th in Baltimore. He didn’t finish in the top 20 in four previous Tour Championship appearances.

• Keegan Bradley

Bradley snapped a streak of four consecutive top-30 finishes by tying for 17th at the BMW Championship. The Ryder Cup captain is 11th in the points standings, and with other golfers like Young and Griffin playing well, Bradley’s decision on whether or not to pick himself with a captain’s pick is becoming increasingly difficult. He finished 21st at 2-under at East Lake last year.

• Sungjae Im

The normally consistent Im has had an up-and-down season, including eight missed cuts and three top 10s in 26 starts. The South Korean golfer is more than capable of putting things together at East Lake, where he was runner-up in 2022 and finished seventh last season.

• Hideki Matsuyama

Surprisingly, the 2021 Masters champion hasn’t had a top 10 since winning The Sentry at the start of the tour season on January 5th. He ranks 126th in strokes gained: off the tee (-.171) and is only hitting 57.3% of the fairways. Matsuyama has four career top 10s at the Tour Championship, including ninth at 9-under in 2024.

• Shane Lowry

Even if Lowry plays well at East Lake this week, he risks losing his position in the European Ryder Cup standings. Lowry is sixth in points, which would earn him an automatic spot on the team. However, he will not receive points for the Tour Championship this week. Dane Rasmus Højgaard is only 14 points behind Lowry. If Højgaard finishes in a tie for 29th or better at this week’s Betfred British Masters on the DP World Tour, he will jump Straka and Lowry for the final automatic spot. Still, Lowry seems sure to get one of captain Donald’s six picks if he doesn’t qualify on points.

• Chris Gotterup

After his hot streak across the pond in July, in which he secured his second PGA Tour victory at the Scottish Open and finished solo third at The Open, Gotterup has cooled off in the playoffs. He likely needs to do something special this week to get back into the Ryder Cup mix.

• Nick Taylor

It’s only the second time that two Canadian golfers have reached the 30-man field at the Tour Championship since the FedEx Cup debuted in 2007. Conners and Taylor also made it to East Lake in 2023.

• Andrew Novak

Novak enjoyed a breakthrough season this year, but things fell apart at last week’s BMW Championship. He finished in 48th place at 20 under par, 35 strokes behind Scheffler.

• Jacob Bridgeman

The former Clemson golfer nearly lost his PGA Tour rookie card after finishing 113th in points after the fall FedEx season. With five top 10s and nine top 25s in 26 starts, he climbed to 27th in points to reach East Lake.