Tour Championship: What you need to know about staggered scoring, the money, the trophies
The final leg of the 2020 FedEx Cup Playoffs starts on Friday at the Tour Championship at East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta.
The season finale always comes with plenty of intrigue.
This tournament was originally on the schedule for the weekend of Aug. 27-30, but the global coronavirus pandemic and the ensuing schedule disruption forced many changes. So the PGA Tour slid one of its marquee events back a week and decided to wrap things up on Labor Day Monday. Which is totally fine with us.
The battle for the season’s money title is already decided. Justin Thomas won that honor for the third time in the last four seasons.
What else should you know about the tournament this week?
Let’s take a look.
The scoring format
There are 30 golfers in the field and they’ll start with staggered scoring. Dustin Johnson finished first in the points so he’ll start at 10 under. Jon Rahm is second and he’ll begin at 8 under and it goes from there, down to golfers in the 26-30 slots. They will start at even par.
A year ago, Rory McIlroy won the FedEx Cup starting five shots back.
Rank | Player | Starting position |
1 | Dustin Johnson | 10 under |
2 | Jon Rahm | 8 under |
3 | Justin Thomas | 7 under |
4 | Webb Simpson | 6 under |
5 | Collin Morikawa | 5 under |
6 | Daniel Berger | 4 under |
7 | Harris English | 4 under |
8 | Bryson DeChambeau | 4 under |
9 | Sungjae Im | 4 under |
10 | Hideki Matsuyama | 4 under |
11 | Brendon Todd | 3 under |
12 | Rory McIlroy | 3 under |
13 | Patrick Reed | 3 under |
14 | Xander Schauffele | 3 under |
15 | Sebastian Munoz | 3 under |
16 | Lanto Griffin | 2 under |
17 | Scottie Scheffler | 2 under |
18 | Joaquin Niemann | 2 under |
19 | Tyrrell Hatton | 2 under |
20 | Tony Finau | 2 under |
21 | Kevin Kisner | 1 under |
22 | Abraham Ancer | 1 under |
23 | Ryan Palmer | 1 under |
24 | Kevin Na | 1 under |
25 | Marc Leishman | 1 under |
26 | Cameron Smith | Even |
27 | Viktor Hovland | Even |
28 | Mackenzie Hughes | Even |
29 | Cameron Champ | Even |
30 | Billy Horschel | Even |
Bonus money
The FedEx Cup Playoffs bonus money dished out this week is not considered part of a player’s official earnings for the season. It’s considered bonus money. That’s why Thomas already has the money title locked up. But that $15 million first-place prize sure looks good in your bank account.
In all, there’s $45 million that will be paid out this week. The 30th-place finisher will still take home – before taxes – $395,000.
Final spot | Amount |
1 | $15 million |
2 | $5 million |
3 | $4 million |
4 | $3 million |
5 | $2.5 million |
6 | $1.9 million |
7 | $1.3 million |
8 | $1.1 million |
9 | $950,000 |
10 | $830,000 |
11 | $750,000 |
12 | $705,000 |
13 | $660,000 |
14 | $620,000 |
15 | $595,000 |
16 | $570,000 |
17 | $550,000 |
18 | $535,000 |
19 | $520,000 |
20 | $505,000 |
21 | $490,000 |
22 | $478,000 |
23 | $466,000 |
24 | $456,000 |
25 | $445,000 |
26 | $435,000 |
27 | $425,000 |
28 | $415,000 |
29 | $405,000 |
30 | $395,000 |
What else do they get?
Finishing in the top 30 also made the golfers exempt for at least three of the majors next year, the WGCs and the Hyundai Tournament of Champions. The winners-only event is granting invites to the top 30 in the FedEx Cup from having lost three months worth of tournaments to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Two trophies
Before the staggered scoring format started last season, we’d see one golfer win the tournament and another golfer win the FedEx Cup. Now, whoever wins the Tour Championship is the FedEx Cup champion, eliminating any confusion and also bringing the focus to one player.
This also means that both trophies go the winner: The FedEx Cup trophy and the Calamity Jane putter. Tiger Woods won the putter by winning the Tour Championship in 2018, the last time they had the split system in place, while Justin Rose won the FedEx Cup.
Justin Rose holds the FedEx Cup and Tiger Woods holds the Calamity Jane, a replica of Bobby Jones putter, after the 2018 Tour Championship at East Lake Golf Club. Photo by Christopher Hanewinckel/USA TODAY Sports
The Calamity Jane putter trophy is a replica of the putter used by Bobby Jones. Since 2005, when East Lake became the permanent home of the Tour Championship, the putter trophy has gone to the tournament winner. The original Calamity Jane currently resides in a trophy case about 140 miles east at Augusta National Golf Club.
The course
East Lake is a par 70 that will play 7,346 yards. It was the home course for Jones and is the oldest golf course in Atlanta. It first opened on July 4, 1908.
No cut
With only 30 players, there’s not cut this week. The tee times will be set each night based on the scoring. The golfers will go out as twosomes on the first tee each day.
TV, streaming information
All times are listed in Eastern.
Friday, Sept. 4
PGA Tour Live on NBC Sports Gold: 10:30 a.m. – 6 p.m. (featured groups)
Golf Channel on fuboTV (watch for free): 1-6 p.m.
PGA Tour Radio on SiriusXM: 12-6 p.m.
Saturday, Sept. 5
PGA Tour Live on NBC Sports Gold: 10:30 a.m. – 6 p.m. (featured groups)
Golf Channel on fuboTV (watch for free): 1-6 p.m.
PGA Tour Radio on SiriusXM: 12-6 p.m.
Sunday, Sept. 6
PGA Tour Live on NBC Sports Gold: 11:30 a.m. – 3 p.m. (featured groups)
PGA Tour Live on ESPN+: 3-6 p.m. (featured holes)
Golf Channel on fuboTV (watch for free): 1-3 p.m.
NBC: 3-7 p.m.
PGA Tour Radio on SiriusXM: 2-7 p.m.
Monday, Sept. 7
PGA Tour Live on NBC Sports Gold: 10:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. (featured groups)
PGA Tour Live on ESPN+: 1:30-6 p.m. (featured holes)
Golf Channel on fuboTV (watch for free): 12-1:30 p.m.
NBC: 1:30-6 p.m.
PGA Tour Radio on SiriusXM: 1-6 p.m.
Golfweek’s Adam Schupak and David Dusek contributed to this article.
