The Tour Championship is finally here. Golfers work all season long to make it to the playoffs, and the Tour Championship is composed of the 30 golfers who had the absolute best season on Tour.
The FedEx Cup winner not only makes 25 million dollars in extra money, but they also get the title of Tour Champion. The Tour Championship is a bit different in the way it works and how scoring is managed.
Let’s look at what to expect from the Tour Championship, the golf course, and, of course, the players with the best chance of winning.
How Does the Tour Championship Work?
The FedEx Cup started with the St.Jude Classic, where 125 players fought to make it to the top 50 for the BMW Championship.
Golfers competed at the BMW to earn FedEx Cup points and make it to the final Tour Championship with just 30 players.
Now that the Tour Championship is upon us, we will see a very unique staggered start, something that doesn’t typically happen in golf.
Each golfer will start a certain amount under par based on their standings in the FedEx Cup rankings.
The player with the most FedEx Cup points will start at -10 for the event. Then you will see the second player at -8, the third at -7, the fourth at -6, and the fifth at -5.
This is then continued into those who are 6th through 10th starting at -4; 11 through 15th at -3, and so on down to 26 to 30 who will start at even par.
Scottie Scheffler, the golfer who has had arguably one of the best seasons in history, starts at -10.
What to Expect of East Lake Golf Club?
The Tour Championship has been held at East Lake before, so many of the players in the event will be used to what this course has to offer.
It’s a par 70 that plays over 7000 yards. East Lake is a Donal Ross design known for its challenging greens.
In addition to those greens, the course has tight fairways. Players are going to have to balance out that combination of distance and accuracy that makes playoff golf so difficult. Course management is going to be key.
Past Winners
When playing a course again, it’s always good to look back and see what past winners have done at East Lake.
Last year we saw Victor Hovland win. He started at -8 and was able to get to -27 during the four day event. Hovland actually ran away with this event, winning by 5 strokes. Xander Schauffele was the runner up.
The year before, we saw Rory McIlroy start -4 and make it to -21. He won by a single stroke over Scottie Scheffler.
Players to Watch in 2024
With only 30 players to choose from in the Tour Championship, picking out some potential top finishers can actually be quite fun.
Of course, we need to first look at the top five, as they are going to get the most strokes and be in the best position to take home the honors.
Scottie Scheffler: Starting at 10-under, he has had an incredible season, and other players describe him as competitive and consistent, a tough golfer to beat at the Tour Championship. However, Scottie looked like he would maybe win last year and the year before, but he couldn’t pull it off.
Xander Schauffele: Starting at 8-under; known for his precision and strong finishes he has two Major Championships in 2024 so we know he can hold up under pressure.
Hideki Matsuyama: Starting at 6-under; as great as his season has been, Hideki hurt his back at the BMW and had to drop out.
Keegan Bradley: Starting at 4-under; if you want to look at a player with the most momentum right now, it would be Keegan. A win at the BMW puts him in a unique spot heading into the Tour Championship.
Ludvig Åberg: Starting at 2-under; Aberg has been around all season but hasn’t pulled off some of the wins we know he is capable of.
Final Thoughts
The staggered start of the Tour Championship makes this a unique golf tournament. There is pressure for those who started far back to make extra birdies. For those that start with a significant advantage, the last thing they will want to do is lose it.
We’ve all expected Scottie to be in the number-one spot all season; now all he needs to do is hang on to it. Is it his year to do that? Or will Xander pull forward and show he can win the Tour Championships just as easily as Major Championships?
Visit 888Sport golf betting section and make sure you are ready for all the Tour Championship action to come.
*Credit for the main photo belongs to Alamy*
