Golf rankings, player capsules

The Sports Xchange's 2013 PGA Tour rankings, selected by TSX Golf Staff, based on 2012-2013 performance.

1. Tiger Woods, United States -- Even though any season that Woods plays without winning a major championship has to be considered something of a disappointment, it hasn't been all bad. He has won five times, regained his No. 1 spot in the World Golf Rankings and has plenty more to play for, starting with the PGA Tour playoffs this week and including the Presidents Cup in October at Muirfield Village. ... Tiger, who leads the Fed Ex Cup standings, is playing in the Barclays for the eighth time, but for only the fourth time since it became the playoff opener. He skipped the tournament in 2007, the first year of the playoffs, but went on to win the FedEx Cup anyway by tying for second in the Deutsche Bank Championship before winning the BMW Championship and the Tour Championship. Woods missed the Barclays because of injuries in 2008 and 2011. His best finish in the tournament was a tie for second in 2009 at Liberty National, where the event will be played this week. He posted consecutive rounds of 4-under-par 67 on the weekend and wound up one stroke behind winner Heath Slocum, but he went on to claim the FedEx Cup for the second time by winning the BMW Championship and tying for second in the Tour Championship. ... Woods will have to wait eight months before he gets another chance to win another major, having been stuck on 14 since winning the 2008 U.S. Open, but the early Masters odds came out last week and he is the favorite. You can make a case that he might have won at Augusta this year had his approach shot on the 15th hole in round two not hit the flagstick and bounced into the water.

2. Adam Scott, Australia -- No matter what else happens, Scott already is guaranteed a career year, as he became the first Australian to win the Masters, but he's got plenty left on his plate. He will start the PGA Tour playoffs this week at the Barclays and also has the Presidents Cup, where he will try to lead the International Team to an upset at Muirfield Village in October. ... Adam will tee it up in the Barclays, the playoff opener, this week for the 10th time, including all five previous times it has kicked off the postseason schedule. His best finish in the tournament was solo second in 2006, the year before the playoffs were instituted, when he opened with a 6-under-par 65 at Westchester and eventually finished two strokes behind Vijay Singh. In 2009, when it was played on the Liberty National course that hosts the tournament this week, he could not break 70 in any of his four rounds and wound up in a tie for 58th. ... Scott, who opens the playoffs at 11th in the FedEx Cup standings thanks to five top-10 finishes, has won two of the four tournaments that make up the postseason schedule, both before the advent of the playoffs in 2007. He captured the 2003 Deutsche Bank Championship and the 2006 Tour Championship. Scott is tied for eighth with seven top-10 finishes in the playoffs, and he ranks fourth with 40 rounds in the 60s during the postseason. His best finish in the FedEx Cup race was 12th in the inaugural season of 2007, dropping from 10th at the end of the regular season. He finished 16th in 2011, dropping from 13th.

3. Phil Mickelson, United States -- Despite his letdown in the PGA Championship, where he tied for 72nd, it's been a big season for Lefty, topped by his first victory in the Open Championship and titles in the Waste Management Phoenix Open and the Barclays Scottish Open. That gives him 51 victories in his pro career, and he will be going for more starting this week with the Barclays, the opener of the PGA Tour playoffs. ... Mickelson, who enters the playoffs sitting fourth in the FedEx Cup standings, is playing in the Barclays for the 12th time but has only one top-10 finish in the tournament, a tie for seventh at Westchester in 2007, the first year of the PGA Tour postseason. He posted three rounds in the 60s but wound up five strokes behind champion Steve Stricker. The last time the opener was played at Liberty National, this week's venue, he broke 70 only when he closed with a 2-under-par 69 and finished in a tie for 52nd. ... Mickelson, who ranks sixth in all-time playoff earnings with $7,230,000, has two playoff victories, in the 2007 Deutsche Bank Championship and the 2009 Tour Championship, but never has taken home the FedEx Cup. His best finish was second in 2009 behind Tiger Woods, after being sixth after the regular season. He has three other top-10 finishes in the FedEx Cup standings. Lefty finished third in 2007 after being fourth at the end of the regular season, fell from third to seventh at the finish in 2008 and climbed from 14th to fifth last year. He's tied for fourth with Woods with nine top-10 finishes in the playoffs and is one of three players to make the Tour Championship every year since 2007.

4. Matt Kuchar, United States -- His 46 top-10 finishes in the last six seasons, the most on the PGA Tour, have allowed Kooch to be a major player in the playoffs for the FedEx Cup. Victories in the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship and the Memorial Tournament, plus runner-up finishes in the Crowne Plaza Invitational and the RBC Canadian Open, in addition to five other top-10s helped him finish the regular season second in the FedEx Cup standings behind Tiger Woods. ... Kuchar is making his 10th start in the Barclays, the playoff opener, and he claimed his only postseason victory in the tournament three years ago at Ridgewood Country Club, posting four rounds in the 60s and then beating Martin Laird of Scotland with a birdie on the first playoff hole. In his title defense, he finished second, two strokes behind Dustin Johnson at Plainfield Country Club, when the tournament was reduced to 54 holes by the threat of Hurricane Irene. When the Barclays was last played at Liberty National, this week's site, he posted two 3-under-par 68s on the way to a tie for 28th in 2009. ... Kooch, who ranks ninth in all-time playoff earnings with $4,315,000, made his best run in the playoffs in 2010, when he started ninth after the regular season and finished second behind Jim Furyk. After winning the Barclays that year, he tied for 11th in the Deutsche Bank Championship, tied for third in the BMW Championship and tied for 25th in the Tour Championship. Kuchar also finished in the top 10 in the FedEx Cup point standings in 2011, when he moved up from 12th at the end of the regular season to sixth at the finish, but last year he skidded from ninth to 18th.

5. Brandt Snedeker, United States -- Perhaps worn down by playing five consecutive weeks, Sneds shot 69-72--141 and missed the cut by two strokes in the Wyndham Championship. It was his fifth time he missed the weekend in 19 tournaments this year on the PGA Tour, but two of them came after he missed about six weeks because of a strained intercostal muscle. ... Snedeker, who finished the regular season third in the FedEx Cup standings, starts defense of his FedEx title he won last year by playing in the Barclays for the eighth time. He began his run to the crown last year by finishing solo second, three strokes behind Nick Watney at Bethpage Black. In 2011, he tied for third at Plainfield Country Club, shooting 9-under-par 61 in round three and finishing three strokes behind winner Dustin Johnson when the tournament was halted by the threat of Hurricane Irene. When the event was last played at Liberty National in 2009, he played the weekend in 67-66 to tie for 12th. He is third on the all-time playoff money list with $11,258,000 and should become the first reigning FedEx Cup champion to make it back to the Tour Championship, where he also would be defending his tournament title. ... Snedeker carded his only birdies of the first round last week in the Wyndham on the 12th and 15th holes to salvage a round of 1-under-par 69. However, he started the second round on the back nine and dug himself a hole right away with bogeys on his first three holes and four of the first six. Brandt tried to rally with three birdies the rest of the way, but it was too late, and he had two extra days off before the start of the playoffs.

6. Justin Rose, England -- Rose is looking for more in a season during which he became the first Englishman to claim a major championship since Nick Faldo won the 1996 Masters. He has plenty left on his plate with the PGA Tour playoffs and the European Tour's Race to Dubai. The U.S. Open champion is seventh in the FedEx Cup standings heading into the playoffs this week at the Barclays, and he also ranks third in the Race to Dubai behind Henrik Stenson of Sweden and Graeme McDowell of Northern Ireland. That won't be decided until the Euro Tour's Final Series, which ends with the DP World Tour Championship Dubai in November. ... Rosy will tee it up on Thursday in the Barclays for the eighth time, with his only top-10 finish in the playoff opener a tie for sixth in 2011 at Plainfield Country Club, where he posted three rounds of 4-under-par 67 before the tournament was limited to 54 holes because of the threat of Hurricane Irene. When the tournament was last played at this week's venue, Liberty National Golf Club in Jersey City, he tied for 41st, breaking 70 only when he posted a 2-under-par 69 in the third round. ... Rose built his strong position in the FedEx Cup standings on the strength of five top-10 finishes (and 10 in the top 25) during the regular season, including his victory in the U.S. Open at Merion. He made his biggest move in the PGA Tour playoffs in 2011, when he climbed from 44th at the end of the regular season to fifth at the end, thanks to that tie for sixth in the Barclays and his only playoff victory at the BMW Championship. Last year, he climbed from 12th to sixth at the finish.

7. Rory McIlroy, Northern Ireland -- Following a tie for eighth in the PGA Championship, McIlroy still can salvage something of his season if his game really is back, although he has plenty of work to do in both the PGA Tour playoffs and the European Tour's Race to Dubai. First, he has to take care of things on this side of the Atlantic, where he ranks 49th in the FedEx Cup standings and must climb into the top 30 in the first three tournaments of the playoffs to earn a spot in the Tour Championship. ... Rory is playing in the playoffs for the third time and has played in the Barclays twice, tying for 56th at Ridgewood Country Club in 2010 and tying for 24th last year at Bethpage Black, where he shot 2-under-par 69 in the first and third rounds. In 2010, he started the playoffs at 21st in the FedEx Cup standings, but after failing to crack the top 30 in the first three events, he wound up 36th and missed the Tour Championship. Last year, he was in the hunt all the way, finishing the regular season third in the standings and winding up second to Brandt Snedeker, following his tie for 24th in the Barclays with victories in the Deutsche Bank Championship and the BMW Championship before tying for 10th at the Tour Championship. ... McIlroy won the Race to Dubai last year with a brilliant final series, finishing second in the BMW Masters, taking third in the Barclays Singapore Open and winning the DP World Tour Championship Dubai. However, he ranks 47th in the standings this year and must really heat up if he wants to make a run at defending his title.

8. Jason Dufner, United States -- While taking the obligatory media tour of New York with his wife, Amanda, after winning the PGA Championship, the personable Dufner took the Wanamaker Trophy to the top of the Empire State Building and the NASDAQ Tower in addition to appearing on "The Dan Patrick Show" and "The Howard Stern Show." Amanda told reporters that the last time they were on a Manhattan rooftop, Jason proposed to her at a restaurant overlooking the Hudson River. When the tour was over, they took off for a beach vacation so he could rest before the start of the PGA Tour playoffs. ... Duf, who climbed 48 spots to 14th in the FedEx Cup standings by winning the PGA and dropped to 15th last week, will be making his sixth start in the Barclays. He missed the cut in four of his previous five appearances. The only time he made it to the weekend, he finished in a tie for 25th at Westchester Country Club in 2007, the first year of the playoffs. When the tournament was last played at this week's site, Liberty National Golf Club in 2009, he shot 73-77--150 and missed the cut by three shots. ... Dufner made his best run in the PGA Tour playoffs in 2009, when he started 42nd in the standings and wound up 11th, bouncing back from a missed cut in the Barclays to tie for second in the Deutsche Bank Championship, tie for 30th in the BMW Championship and tie for 19th in the Tour Championship. After claiming his first two PGA Tour victories last year, he started the playoffs at second in the FedEx Cup standings but skipped the Barclays because he said he needed the rest. He eventually tied for 14th.

9. Dustin Johnson, United States -- DJ hopes to make up for what has been an up-and-down season with a big performance in the PGA Tour playoffs, and he seems to have his game going in the right direction after a tie for second in the RBC Canadian Open and a tie for eighth in the PGA Championship in his last two tournaments. Those results helped him finish the regular season 16th in the FedEx Cup standings and in a prime spot to make a run during the playoffs. ... Johnson, who got engaged to Paulina Gretzky last week, will tee it up this week in the Barclays for the sixth time. After shooting 76-69--145 to miss the cut the first time he played in the event in 2008 at Ridgewood Country Club, he has performed very well. He posted rounds of 66-63-65 to win it by two strokes over Matt Kuchar in 2011 at Plainfield Country Club, when the event was shortened to 54 holes by the threat of Hurricane Irene. He also tied for third last year in his title defense at Bethpage Black, four shots behind winner Nick Watney; tied for ninth in 2010 at Ridgewood, and tied for 15th in 2009 at Liberty National, where the tournament will be played this week. ... Johnson is one of seven players who have claimed multiple titles in the playoffs, also winning the 2010 BMW Championship, and he ranks 12th on the all-time postseason money list with $3,402,000. He has moved up in the FedEx Cup standings during the playoffs each of the last four years, from 19th to 14th in 2009, from 11th to fifth in 2010, from 11th to a career-high fourth two years ago and from 26th to eighth last year, when he finished in the top 10 of all four playoff tournaments.

10. Luke Donald, England -- The former No. 1 player in the World Golf Rankings can make up for what has turned into a dismal season with strong performances in the PGA Tour playoffs and the Race to Dubai on the European Tour. After missing the cut in three of his last four tournaments, including the Open Championship and the PGA Championship, and finishing the regular season 55th in the FedEx Cup standings, he has work to do if he wants to reach the Tour Championship at East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta. He won the Race to Dubai title two years ago, but he sits 45th in the European standings after missing the cut in four tournaments this season that count in the Euro Tour rankings. ... Luke will tee it up this week in the Barclays for the ninth time. His best finish, a tie for fifth at Westchester in 2006, came a year before the tournament became the playoff opener, and he also finished solo seventh on the same course in 2004. His best result since the event became part of the playoffs was a tie for 10th last year at Bethpage Black, where he could do no better than an opening 3-under-par 68. When the tournament was last played at Liberty National in 2009, he tied for 31st, with his best a 2-under 69 in round two. ... Even though he has never won an event in the PGA Tour playoffs, Donald ranks eighth on the all-time postseason money list with $4,960,000. He has finished in the top 10 at the finish in each of the last three seasons, including climbing from 22nd to third in final 2010 standings by tying for second in the Deutsche Bank Championship and finishing solo second behind Jim Furyk, the FedEx Cup champion, in the Tour Championship.

11. Bill Haas, United States -- Playing in his home state of North Carolina, Haas broke 70 in three of his four rounds last week and warmed up for the PGA Tour playoffs with a tie for 20th in the Wyndham Championship. After carding his only bogey of the final round on the 15th hole, he hit his approach from 167 yards to within one foot of the hole on No. 18 and tapped in for a birdie to record a 2-under 68 that allowed him to climb one spot to fifth in the FedEx Cup standings heading into the postseason. In his last six events, he has five finishes in the top 25, including a victory in the AT&T National. ... Haas, who captured the FedEx Cup title two years ago by winning the Tour Championship in a playoff over Hunter Mahan but did not make it back to the finale last year, will be making his seventh start in the Barclays. His best results were ties for 24th in 2009 at Liberty National, where the tournament will be played this week, and in 2011 at Plainfield Country Club, where he played the weekend in 68-68. Last year he got his FedEx Cup defense off to a deflating start when he shot 71-75--146 and missed the cut by three shots at Bethpage Black. He started the playoffs 21st in the standings, but after three events, he was 32nd and two spots out of making it back to East Lake. ... Haas opened with 69-66 last week at Sedgefield Country Club, playing bogey-free in the second round, before stumbling a bit on Saturday, when he made bogeys on the last two holes to shoot 71 and perhaps miss out on some valuable FedEx Cup points.

12. Webb Simpson, United States -- One week after posting a 64 that tied the course record at Oak Hill in the PGA Championship before Jason Dufner shot 63 a few hours later, Simpson closed with a 7-under-par 63 to wind up in a tie for 11th in the Wyndham Championship. The 2011 U.S. Open champion barely missed his fifth top-10 finish of the season, but his game seems to be rounding into shape just in time for the start of the PGA Tour playoffs. ... Simpson, who moved up one spot to 17th in the FedEx Cup standings, is playing in the Barclays for the fifth time, with his best result solo eighth in 2009 at Liberty National, where the tournament is being played this week. He led after starting 66-68 but fell back on the weekend with 72-72 and wound up three strokes behind winner Heath Slocum. He also tied for 10th two years ago, when he shot 66-63 in the second and third rounds at Plainfield Country Club before the tournament was halted because Hurricane Irene was on the way. Webb won the 2011 Deutsche Bank Championship during the playoffs and finished second in the point standings behind Bill Haas. ... Simpson recorded three early birdies and then wedged his second shot into the hole from 107 yards for an eagle at No. 8 in the final round last week. He made the turn in 5-under 30, and after his only bogey at No. 10, he made three consecutive birdies through No. 15. Simpson, who opened with a 71, recorded a bogey-free 67 in round two and had a chance to go low again on Saturday after holing a three-foot eagle putt on No. 5 following a magnificent approach from 235 yards, but he had four bogeys in a round of 70.

13. Steve Stricker, United States -- Stricker struggled through the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational, finishing 13th, and the PGA Championship, tying for 12th, because of a torn right hamstring sustained in a water skiing accident. He originally planned to skip the playoffs completely, but then said he would play in at least one or two events because he wants to make the United States team for the Presidents Cup in October. However, he will pass on the opener, the Barclays, in part to rest his injured leg. He has played in all 24 previous playoff events. ... It's too bad Strick has to miss the Barclays, because he has finished in the top three in the tournament three times, including a victory in the very first playoff event in 2007. He posted three scores in the 60s at Westchester Country Club and won by two strokes over K.J. Choi. He also tied for third in 2010 at Ridgewood Country Club and tied for second in 2009 at Liberty National, where the tournament will be played this week, playing the weekend in 68-69 to wind up one stroke behind Heath Slocum. ... Stricker, who is 20th in the Fed Ex Cup standings, has earned the nickname "Mr. September," because of his stellar play in the PGA Tour playoffs, and he ranks seventh on the postseason money list at $6,430,000. He in one of seven players with multiple victories in the playoffs, also having won the 2009 Deutsche Bank Championship. Stricker is tied with Jim Furyk and Camilo Villegas with a series-high 10 finishes in the top 10 in the playoffs, and he has finished in the top 10 in the FedEx Cup standings three times, including second to Tiger Woods in 2007 and third behind Woods and Phil Mickelson in 2009. Stricker, who finished the regular season at 20th in the standings, has not finished out of the top 20 in the six-year history of the playoffs.

14. Lee Westwood, England -- Last year, Westwood rejoined the PGA Tour for the first time since 2006 because he was sitting on his couch at home in Worksop, England, watching the playoffs and wishing he was there. This year, as he was about to turn 40, he decided to move his family to Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., because he saw his career beginning to wind down and felt he had at least a five-year window to maximize his chances to win a major by competing on the best tour in the world. This season has not gone as well as he might have hoped, especially in the majors, and he enters the postseason at 35th in the FedEx Cup standings. ... Westy is playing in the Barclays for the third time, and last year be posted his best finish in the tournament, a tie for fifth at Bethpage Black. He broke the par of 71 on three of the four days and wound up five shots behind champion Nick Watney. That is his only playoff appearance in the tournament, as he also tied for 47th in 1998 and shot 74-74--148 to miss the cut by five strokes in 2006, both at Westchester Country Club. ... Westwood played well in his first venture in the PGA Tour playoffs, following his finish in the Barclays with a tie for 13th in the Deutsche Bank Championship, a tie for second in the BMW Championship and solo 30th in the Tour Championship, climbing from 51st in the FedEx Cup standings during the regular season to 10th at the finish. He has to play well again to climb into the top 30 and ensure a spot in the Tour Championship.

15. Keegan Bradley, United States -- Even though he does not have a victory this season after winning in each of his first two years on the PGA Tour, Bradley has seven top-10 finishes and 12 in the top 25 this year, putting him in good shape at 10th in the FedEx Cup standings heading into the playoffs. He would like to get off to good start for the first time in the playoffs this week at Liberty National Golf Club after missing the cut in each of his first two appearances in the Barclays. ... Keegan shot 69-74--143 to miss the cut in his first Barclays by four strokes as a rookie at Plainfield Country Club in 2011, and posted a score of 71-73--144 last year at Bethpage Black to miss the weekend by one shot. He's hoping the course at Liberty National will suit his game a little better, and the 2008 graduate of nearby St. John's in New York should have one of the biggest galleries to spur him on. ... After missing the cut in his first two playoff events in 2011, Bradley tied for 16th in the BMW Championship and tied for 11th in the Tour Championship but still slid from fifth at the end of the regular season to 20th in the FedEx Cup standings at the finish. Last year, he started the postseason eighth in the standings, but his best finish in the playoffs was a tie for 13th in the Deutsche Bank Championship. After a tie for 23rd in the Tour Championship, he wound up in 21st place.

16. Hunter Mahan, United States -- When Steve Stricker passes up the Barclays this week to rest his injured right leg, Mahan will become the only player to have competed in all 25 tournaments since the PGA Tour playoffs began in 2007. However, he won't be thinking about that because he needs to build on his 21st place in the FedEx Cup standings to ensure that he remains in the top 30 to make the field for the Tour Championship and make a run at the title. ... Hunter will be making his eighth start in the Barclays and does not have a top-10 finish, with his best result a tie for 17th at Westchester Country Club in the first year of the playoffs, 2007. He posted a 9-under-par 62 in the third round that year to put himself in the hunt, but he played his way out of it with a 76 on Sunday. Last year, he shot 73-74--147 and missed the cut in the tournament for the first time by four strokes at Bethpage Black. When the tournament was last played at Liberty National, this week's venue, he tied for 20th in 2009 by playing the weekend in 68-70. ... Mahan made his best showing in the PGA Tour playoffs in 2011, starting at 20th and rising to seventh in the FedEx Cup point standings at the finish by tying for eighth in the Deutsche Bank Championship and losing in a playoff to Bill Haas, the Cup winner, at the Tour Championship. Mahan would have taken home the title and the $10 million bonus prize had he won at East Lake. Last year, he started the playoffs at a career-high sixth in the standings, but he did not play well until tying for eighth in the Tour Championship and wound up 19th in the points.

17. Ernie Els, South Africa -- After making a last-minute commitment to the Wyndham Championship because he wanted to move up in the FedEx Cup standings, Els had to hole a four-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole in round two to make the cut on the number at 71-68--139. He closed with a 5-under-par 65, his best score of the year on the PGA Tour by two strokes, and wound up in a tie for 20th, his best result in six events since he captured the BMW International Open in Germany. ... The Big Easy, who climbed four spots to 82nd in the FedEx Cup standings heading to the PGA Tour playoffs, will be making his 17th appearance in the Barclays. He won the tournament in 1996 and 1997 at Westchester Country Club, long before it became the opener of the postseason schedule. His best finish since the advent of the FedEx Cup was a tie for second in 2009 at Liberty National, where the event will be played this week. Els closed with a 5-under-par 66 that year to finish one shot behind Heath Slocum. Surprisingly, he has not been much of a factor in the five-year history of the playoffs, with his best season 2009, when he led the FedEx Cup standings after the regular season but wound up ninth at the finish. ... For a while Sunday, it looked as if Els would lose ground in the standings when he carded a bogey at No. 12 after starting at No. 10, but he reeled off three birdies in the next four holes and had a similar run through No. 6 on the front en route to his 65. He needs to move into the top 70 in the standings in the first two events to make the field for the BMW Championship.

18. Graeme McDowell, Northern Ireland -- G-Mac's up-and-down season on the PGA Tour, which includes a victory in the RBC Heritage but also four missed cuts, has him in 28th place at the start of the PGA Tour playoffs and needing to play well to remain in the top 30 and make it all the way to the Tour Championship. He's in much better shape in the Race to Dubai on the European Tour, where victories in the Volvo World Match Play Championship and the Alstom Open de France have him sitting second behind Henrik Stenson of Sweden. ... McDowell will tee it up in the Barclays this week for the fifth time, with his best result solo 12th in 2006 at Westchester Country Club, the year before the tournament became the playoff opener. Last year, he shot 75-71--146 and missed the cut by three strokes at Bethpage Black. This will be the first time he plays at Liberty National, as he was not a full-time PGA Tour member when the tournament was last played there in 2009. ... McDowell is competing in the PGA Tour playoffs for only the third time, as he did not join the circuit full-time until after he captured the 2010 U.S. Open at Pebble Beach. In 2011, he started the playoffs at 93rd in the FedEx Cup standings and dropped out after tying for 43rd in the Barclays and tying for 37th in the Deutsche Bank Championship, moving up to 73rd but failing to make the field of 70 at the BMW Championship. Last year, he started 27th but couldn't crack the top 30 in three events and fell to 42nd, missing the 30-man field at the Tour Championship.

19. Zach Johnson, United States -- The hot streak continued for Johnson, who posted four rounds in the 60s last week and finished in a tie for fifth in the Wyndham Championship. He finished in the top 10 for the fifth consecutive tournament but had to be disappointed that he did not win for the first time since capturing the Crowne Plaza Invitational and the John Deere Classic a year ago. He did climb five spots to 18th in the FedEx Cup standings heading to the PGA Tour playoffs. ... Despite his hot streak, Johnson is going to miss the playoff opener, the Barclays, because he will be the best man at his brother's wedding in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. He hasn't done so well in the Barclays over the years, with his best finish in seven appearances a tie for 21st at Ridgewood Country Club in 2010, when he started with 69-69 before playing the weekend in 71-70. When the tournament was last played at Liberty National in 2009, he broke 70 only with a 4-under-par 67 in the third round and tied for 28th. Johnson has started the playoffs in the top 10 in the FedEx Cup standings three times but hasn't been able to move up, going from fourth to 12th at the end last year, from third to sixth in 2009, and starting and finishing seventh in 2007. ... Zach held a one-stroke lead late in the third round last week at Sedgefield Country Club, but he missed a five-foot birdie putt on the 15th hole and fell out of the lead when he three-putted for bogey from 45 feet on the final hole to finish a 4-under-par 66. He closed with a 68 but finished three strokes out of the playoff in which Patrick Reed defeated Jordan Spieth.

20. Bubba Watson, United States -- It's been a disappointing season for the 2012 Masters champion, who has finished in the top 10 only three times and enters the PGA Tour playoffs at 38th in the FedEx Cup standings. That means he will have to play solid golf in the first three tournaments of the postseason to climb into the top 30 and qualify for the Tour Championship. ... Bubba has played in the Barclays seven times previously and missed the cut four times, but he also has used it to get off to good starts in the playoffs twice. In 2008, he tied for 12th at Ridgewood Country Club, opening with a 3-under-par 68 and at least equaling par each of the other three days. Last year, Watson carded three consecutive 1-under-par 70s and shot even par on Sunday to finish in a tie for 10th. When the tournament was last played at Liberty National in 2009, he shot 74-74--148 and missed the cut by one stroke. ... Watson started the playoffs in the top 10 in the FedEx Cup standings in each of the previous three seasons, and he has gone in the other direction every time. Last year, after his tie for 10th at the Barclays, he missed the cut in the Deutsche Bank Championship, tied for 12th in the BMW Championship and tied for fifth in the Tour Championship. Despite his first two top-10 finishes in the playoffs, he slid from fifth to 13th in the final standings. In 2011, he started the playoffs eighth but wound up 26th, and in 2010 he fell from eighth to 22nd in the playoffs.

Others receiving consideration: Ian Poulter, England; Jordan Spieth, United States; Henrik Stenson, Sweden; Patrick Reed, United States; Charl Schwartzel, South Africa; Sergio Garcia, Spain; Jason Day, Australia; Charles Howell III, United States; Martin Laird, Scotland; Angel Cabrera, Argentina; Kevin Streelman, United States; D.A. Points, United States; Billy Horschel, United States; John Merrick, United States; Russell Henley, United States; David Lingmerth, Sweden; Sang-Moon Bae, South Korea; Boo Weekley, United States; Harris English, United States; Jonas Blixt, Sweden.