A year like no other seen in PGA Tour history, the frantically re-scheduled 2020 season comes to an end this Sunday with the top 30 players in the FedExCup Standings gathered at famed East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta for the Tour Championship. It is the second year of the new FedExCup playoff format, which has standings leader Dustin Johnson beginning the week at 10-under.
Given the special kind of heater he is on lately, it has to be discouraging for the field to be behind him before even taking their first stroke.
Among those who did not make the Tour Championship field this year includes Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, Brooks Koepka, Jason Day, Jordan Spieth, Rickie Fowler, Justin Rose, and others, but the field is still undeniably stacked, as TV executives pray to the Nielsen Gods that this week’s event brings the same kind of intrigue seen at last week’s BMW Championship, which culminated in an awe-inspiring playoff between the top two players in the world rankings.
Here is who we like most in the battle for the $15 million FedExCup grand prize:
30. Marc Leishman
Not since the major exemption era of Michael Campbell’s career has someone from Oceania had such a poor showing on a leaderboard as Leishman did at Olympia Fields last week.
Saying the 36-year-old Aussie was dead last does not feel like enough information to do the historically terrible week justice: at 30-over-par(!) he was last by nine strokes, and 15 strokes back of third-to-last place.
Leishman played well enough over the season to still qualify for this event, but he has been in an absolute tailspin since Tour play resumed, missing four of eight cuts (and he was in two no-cut events), and nothing better than a T40. In addition, he has not played this event well, shooting over par and finishing outside the top 20 in each of his past three attempts.
World Rank: 23rd
FedExCup Rank: 25th
Starting Strokes: -1
Odds (W, 5, 10): 600-1, 200-1, 100-1
Last Six: 69, MC, MC, 52, 40, MC
29. Kevin Na
August was not kind to the Shriners Hospitals For Children winner, who finished T35, CUT, T39, T51 in his four month starts. Na played his final 31 holes at the BMW birdie-free, and has struggled badly off the tees.
We do not see it coming back together this week for the world No. 33, who finished inside the bottom five in his last two East Lake starts.
World Rank: 33rd
FedExCup Rank: 24th
Starting Strokes: -1
Odds (W, 5, 10): 300-1, 66-1, 20-1
Last Six: 51, 39, MC, 35, 9, 5
28. Cameron Champ
The absurdly long hitter contended at the PGA Championship, even getting himself into the final Saturday pairing, but has been miserable in the playoffs, missing the cut at The Northern Trust and then finishing T65 (+15) in the 69-man field at the BMW Championship.
Champ is as fun to watch off the tees as anyone on Tour. Unfortunately for him though, a reeling short game will likely mean an uphill battle in his Tour Championship debut. TPC Harding Park was his only top 10 since winning last September’s Safeway Open.
World Rank: 75th
FedExCup Rank: 29th
Starting Strokes: E
Odds (W, 5, 10): 600-1, 150-1, 66-1
Last Six: 65, MC, 10, 25, MC, 67
27. Sebastian Munoz
At No. 80 in the world, the 27-year-old from Colombia has the worst world ranking of anyone to qualify for the Tour Championship. The winner of last September’s Sanderson Farms Championship, Munoz has had few good weeks since, but seems to be finding his form again in the playoffs.
Munoz opened The Northern Trust with seven consecutive birdies, eventually finishing T18, and he bogeyed only two weekend holes in a T8 effort at the BMW Championship. At Olympia Fields, he had three rounds where he gained at least 2.7 strokes on the field tee-to-green. This will be his first attempt at East Lake.
World Rank: 80th
FedExCup Rank: 15th
Starting Strokes: -3
Odds (W, 5, 10): 20-1, 40-1, 16-1
Last Six: 8, 18, 74, MC, 48, MC
26. Cameron Smith
The 27-year-old Aussie managed to make the East Lake field despite just two top-10s on the season, including none since his victory at January’s Sony Open, a win that was largely aided by another player’s late collapse.
What is encouraging for Smith, however, is that his best two results since came in the past two weeks: a T18 at The Northern Trust followed by a T20 at the BMW Championship. Smith was third at Olympia Fields in strokes gained: around-the-green.
World Rank: 48th
FedExCup Rank: 26th
Starting Strokes: E
Odds (W, 5, 10): 600-1, 200-1, 80-1
Last Six: 20, 18, 43, 59, 68, MC
25. Viktor Hovland
The 22-year-old Norweigan will be making the first of what is likely to be many starts at East Lake this week. He has the tee-to-green game to contend anywhere, but we are concerned that his season has largely hit the skids since his third place finish at the Workday Charity Open in mid-July.
Hovland was T40 at last week’s BMW Championship, shooting over par in all four rounds and struggling to hit fairways.
World Rank: 31st
FedExCup Rank: 27th
Starting Strokes: E
Odds (W, 5, 10): 300-1, 80-1, 20-1
Last Six: 40, 18, 33, 59, 48, 3
24. Abraham Ancer
Ancer has been one of the bigger playoff disappointments, as we have recently had him ranked considerably higher than most, given his history of performing well in the playoffs, in addition to how spectacular he looked prior to July.
We still think his first Tour win is really, really close, but it is difficult to have extraordinary confidence in his chances at East Lake coming off a T43, CUT, T33 stretch of results, and an iron game that has been all over the map. We are going to risk cooling off of him too early. He was T21 in his event debut last season.
World Rank: 26th
FedExCup Rank: 22nd
Starting Strokes: -1
Odds (W, 5, 10): 300-1, 80-1, 20-1
Last Six: 33, MC, 43, 15, 58, 11
23. Mackenzie Hughes
Through 11 starts this season, Hughes had nine missed cuts, a T55 and a T65, so to make it to East Lake is a heck of an accomplishment. Also impressive is that he is one of just two players in the field who was outside the top 30 going into last week (Niemann).
A vastly-improved short game is largely to credit for Hughes finishing T13 or better in four of his past seven starts, including a T10 at last week’s BMW Championship.
One of the biggest ‘boom or bust’ players on Tour, the Canadian could surprise, but given he has not played this event before, we are skeptical of whether this will be one of those seemingly-random weeks he goes off.
World Rank: 65th
FedExCup Rank: 28th
Starting Strokes: E
Odds (W, 5, 10): 600-1, 150-1, 50-1
Last Six: 10, 13, 58, 44, 6, 48
22. Ryan Palmer
Only one player over the age of 40 was good enough to make this year’s Tour Championship. It was not Tiger Woods, but rather Ryan Palmer, who has survived subpar putting to reach East Lake in the 23 position.
Seven years older than the next oldest player (Kevin Kisner), Palmer has been very boom-or-bust as of late, with three top 8s and a T15 mixed with two missed cuts and two results of T40 or worse. This is his first Tour Championship since he finished seventh in 2014, posting four rounds in the 60s.
World Rank: 34th
FedExCup Rank: 23rd
Starting Strokes: E
Odds (W, 5, 10): 400-1, 80-1, 25-1
Last Six: 40, 8, 43, 15, 2, MC
21. Sungjae Im
The stats look good for the 22-year-old on the season: in 25 starts, he has made 20 cuts, with a win, a runner-up, two T3s, and seven top-10s. However, among those inside the top 10 of the current standings, the Honda Classic champion stands out as someone in poor recent form.
In his last nine starts, Im has four missed cuts, and four additional results outside the top 50. A year ago, the rookie opened this event with a 3-under 67, but faded from there and finished T19.
World Rank: 27th
FedExCup Rank: 9th
Starting Strokes: -4
Odds (W, 5, 10): 110-1, 20-1, 9-1
Last Six: 56, MC, 9, MC, 35, MC
Navigate to next 10
