First Fed-Ex Cup draws near: Which golfers will make the top 144?
| 6
|
by Wrmjr
The FedEx Cup is a new points competition that closes the official PGA season. The final 4 tournaments get a progressively smaller field, with the winner of the overall points championship will win $10 million--the largest single payout in sports. You can find more details in the Fan Guide.
Tiger Woods is leading the points competition right now, but Vijay Singh, Jim Furyk and Phil Mickelson could catch him, depending on playing schedules and how well they finish in the coming weeks. A number one seed gets a small initial points advantage going into the 4-tournament playoff, which to my mind is too small an advantage for having the best season (by points) on the tour.
There are a number of notable golfers who are in danger of not making the initial 144 player field: Steve Lowery, Dudley Hart, Duffy Waldorf and John Daly are all currently out of the field, while poor showings by Cory Pavin, Lee Janzen and Bob Tway could drop them below the cutoff.
It will be interesting to see if the points format, the playoff-style reduction and field, and the amount of money that go into the FedEx cup will generate the kind of excitement that the PGA hopes. With the final tournaments vying against early NFL games for viewers, there is no guarantee of success. I have my doubts about how much added popularity golf will receive because of the Fedex Cup, but I'll be following the tournaments--sometimes during commercials of NFL games--to see what happens.
