Power Rankings: TOUR Championship

This is the TOUR Championship. It’s the PGA TOUR’s version of a Game 7. No matter what happens, the 17th FedExCup champion will be crowned at its conclusion.

As it has throughout the history of the FedExCup Playoffs, East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta hosts the top 30 in the FedExCup standings. All qualifiers are slotted for the traditional full-field version of this Power Rankings. The format, course, perks and other information are detailed below.

NOTE: Each golfer's FedExCup Starting Strokes will open the comments.

The five-year-old irony of the season finale is that the method of determining position in the FedExCup standings doesn’t apply at the TOUR Championship. Since 2019, FedExCup Starting Strokes has served as an opening round before the opening round because it rewards season-long performance that includes the first two Playoffs events.

For sitting in the top spot at the conclusion of the BMW Championship, Scottie Scheffler will begin the customary four-round, 72-hole stroke-play competition at East Lake at 10-under par. Viktor Hovland, who is fresh off an impressive victory at the BMW Championship, is 8-under par. The values of opening strokes in relation to par cascade down to even par for each of the golfers ranked 26th-30th in the FedExCup.

The combination of FedExCup Starting Strokes with strokes in relation to par across the 72 holes played will serve as the final measurement of performance. The golfer with the lowest combined value will be declared the FedExCup champion. He will earn $18 million, an official PGA TOUR victory and a five-year membership exemption.

All earnings are unofficial but for having qualified for the TOUR Championship, all 30 already have earned exemptions into the 2024 editions of The Sentry, Masters, U.S. Open and The Open Championship. Membership status also is extended through 2025 if not already eligible via a multi-year exemption. (Existing multi-year exemptions are not extended by virtue of the special two-year exemption earned this week.)

In the first four years during which FedExCup Starting Strokes has been used, 20 out of a possible 80 golfers ranked 11th-30th in the FedExCup upon arrival rose from outside the top 10 to a finish inside the top 10. It happened three times in 2022. The best-ever jump was Billy Horschel in 2021. After opening seeded 29th and at even par, he scored 10-under par at the TOUR Championship and finished T9. Notably by comparison in the same edition, that was two strokes lower than Tony Finau who opened at 8 under par as the 2-seed and scored even for 72 holes.

Facilitating conditions capable of yielding impactful and exciting swings in scoring is a prerequisite at East Lake. The third of the three stock par 70s in this Playoffs averaged just 67.905 last year, the lowest in its history. Now, preferred lies were in effect for the first two rounds and rain kept the course soft and gettable, so scoring should be higher this week because dry conditions are forecast. Daytime temperatures easily will rise into the mid-to-upper 90s until it drops into the upper 80s for the finale when the next threat for rain encroaches. Wind will be a non-factor throughout.

The field is small enough that everyone will be playing essentially in the same elements, but because it will be benign, albeit hot and muggy, East Lake will present as the fair and consistent test that underscores its reputation and reliability as the anchor leg of the Playoffs.

The track tips at 7,346 yards and the pair of par 5s – Nos. 6 and 18 – comprise one of the most vulnerable sets of the season. During 2021-22, they averaged 4.31, the second-easiest of 50 courses used. En route to his victory, Rory McIlroy led the field at 3.88 with two eagles, five birdies and one par.

The lushest rough is 2.5 inches, while average-sized Bermuda greens are prepped to run to the customary 13 feet on the Stimpmeter for the tournament.

As soon as the tournament concludes, architect Andrew Green will be getting to work on a renovation of the course that was announced in January of 2022. You’ve seen his work most recently at Oak Hill Country Club, host of the PGA Championship in May. East Lake is scheduled to be ready to go as host of the 2024 TOUR Championship, so it will not miss a start.

ROB BOLTON’S SCHEDULE

PGATOUR.com’s Rob Bolton recaps and previews every tournament from numerous perspectives. Look for his following contributions as scheduled.

MONDAY: Power Rankings

WEDNESDAY: Golfbet Insider

SUNDAY: Payouts and Points, Qualifiers, Reshuffle

NOTE: Rob is a member of the panel for PGATOUR.COM’s Expert Picks for PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf, which publishes on Tuesday.