Dustin Johnson shot a 64 on Sunday, giving him a five-shot lead going into Monday’s final round of the FedExCup finale in Atlanta.
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CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Tiger Woods holed a 13-foot birdie putt on his final hole Friday to guarantee that he’ll stick around for the weekend at the Wells Fargo Championship. Woods shot 73 to finish at 2-over 144. That was his only birdie as he struggled with the putter for a second consecutive day. He lost 2.9 stokes on the green Friday and has lost more than four strokes with his putter over the first two rounds. “I have to go work on it, fix it, and try to get a little more hit in my stroke,â€� said Woods, who’s 55th in the FedExCup. He missed three putts from 3-7 feet Friday, and his birdie putt at the last hole was the only putt he made from outside 10 feet. He was 1 for 5 from 10-15 feet in the second round. Woods started the week ranked eighth in Strokes Gained: Putting (+1.08). He had missed his previous two cuts at Quail Hollow, in 2010 and 2012. He also is scheduled to play next week’s THE PLAYERS Championship, which he won in both 2001 and 2013. FRIENDS HELPING FRIENDS Justin Thomas was so upset with his putting that he switched putters after Thursday’s first round. How rare is such a move? He can’t remember the last time he switched to a new putter model in the middle of a tournament. The putter is one of Rickie Fowler’s backup Scotty Cameron 2s. When asked if he’d let Thomas keep the club, Fowler said, “He only lives a few hundred yards down the street, so it won’t be too far away. But if he keeps making putts, I might have to take it back.â€� The only deterrent for Thomas may be the fact that Fowler’s name is stamped on the back. His 69 was four shots lower than Thursday’s round, and kept alive his hopes of reaching No. 1 in the Official World Golf Ranking. He needs to finish solo 12th or better to assume the top spot. He already leads the FedExCup standings after winning last year’s Cup. Thomas admitted at the World Golf Championships-Dell Technologies Match Play that he put pressure on himself to assume the top position in the Official World Golf Ranking. He said that he has a better outlook on the honor now. “Someone told me, and it was a great way to put it, I’m not trying to have it for a week, I’m trying to have it for a long time,â€� Thomas said. “I can’t put too much pressure on having it because it’s not like it’s just going to be once and it will be done.â€� Thomas also extended his streak of cuts made in individual tournaments to 17. He missed the cut in last week’s Zurich Classic, but that was his first MC since last year’s Open Championship. He has nine top-10s in those 17 events, including four wins. He’s finished outside the top 25 just twice. Thomas could take over the No. 1 ranking the day after his home state’s largest sporting event, the Kentucky Derby, and take it into one of his favorite events. He shot a 65 in each of his first two PLAYERS Championships and finished third in 2016. NOTABLES Sam Burns went eagle-birdie-birdie on Nos. 7-9 to shoot 31 and take the lead at 7 under. He bogeyed three of his final four holes to shoot 70, though. He’ll still enter the weekend in the top 10. He’ll earn special temporary membership if he can stay there by Sunday evening. Burns needs 80 points to earn that status, which will allow him to accept unlimited sponsor exemptions for the remainder of the season. If he doesn’t his time on TOUR will be limited, at least for the time being. He’ll use the last of his seven allotted sponsor exemptions at the Fort Worth Invitational, then will play the Memorial Tournament presented by Nationwide. He’s in that event as the winner of last year’s Nicklaus Award, which is given to the college player of the year. Burns has a TOUR card for next season all but locked up. He’s fifth on the Web.com Tour money list after winning the Savannah Golf Championship. Quail Hollow member Johnson Wagner shot even par on Friday after shooting a first-round 67 that included back-to-back eagles. “Playing late Saturday in my home tournament, I couldn’t be happier,â€� he said.
Promise. That’s the essence of the FedExCup Playoffs in a single word, but it stands for more than one thing. Qualifying means fully exempt status for the 2018-19 season, the guarantee for finishing inside the top 125 of the FedExCup standings entering the four-event series. It’s the definitive in advance of the opportunity presented during the Playoffs itself. While an individual sport challenges the definition of the PGA TOUR’s Playoffs, what’s not different about this system is that anything can happen. My annual Power Rankings takes into account the usual variables that project success and inject trends that have emerged during the Playoffs. Scroll beneath the 30 golfers ranked for more insight and intel. POWER RANKINGS: FEDEXCUP PLAYOFFS RANK PLAYER COMMENT Seeded second and in possession of an it-factor unto his own. Unflappable and fearless, he’s in the strongest position of any defending FedExCup champion. Also defending at TPC Boston. The 4-seed has gone 14-for-14 with two wins among eight top 10s in 2017-18. Finished ninth in last year’s FedExCup after going T10-T10-T2-T10 in the Playoffs. Won at Aronimink (BMW) in 2010. Beware the PGA TOUR’s best putter. Two wins and a T2 among 11 top 20s in just 16 starts this season. Two top fives at both Ridgewood (2010, 2014) and TPC Boston (2010, 2011). The 6-seed. First FedExCup appearance in five years. While he opens 20th, it’d be an upset if he’s not among the top five entering the TOUR Championship and a member of the Ryder Cup team. If you ever wondered how difficult it is to win the FedExCup, he debuted last year as the 6-seed and went T3-T4-T5-T7 to finish “only” fifth. Opens this edition 13th despite a curtailed schedule. Top seed also is No. 1 in too many stats to list, but short-term inconsistency suggests a lack of focus and over-reliance on natural ability. Defending THE NORTHERN TRUST on a different course. Poised to spoil as the 43-seed. Hadn’t opened worse than eighth (twice) in his first five appearances. Won the 2015 FedExCup. Solo second at TPC Boston last year. Putting is improving. It hasn’t mattered where or when, he’s shown up and delivered. With so many notable performances in the biggest events, he feels low seeded 23rd. Fifth on TOUR in adjusted scoring. The 10-seed is on the Ryder Cup team and headed to East Lake for the fifth straight year, so he’s chasing Player of the Year honors. Finished T4-T5-T6 in last three appearances at TPC Boston. THE PLAYERS champ seeded seventh is evidence of a guy in his prime. The transformation with his putter has been remarkable. TPC Boston winner in 2011. Two top fives at East Lake. Talk about the shot of adrenaline at Sedgefield what with the opening 59 and wire-to-wire victory. Four top 10s in last eight starts and 30th in points. The 2012 FedExCup champion. From 2015-2017, he finished 13th, fifth and 11th, respectively, in the FedExCup. In the last nine Playoffs events, he’s posted two seconds, two fourth- and three fifth-place finishes. Opens 16th. This should be fun. At 12th in FedExCup points, he’s the only non-winner inside the top 16. Two runner-up finishes among eight top 10s in 2017-18. Already his fourth Playoffs appearance. It’s fair to wonder how the 3-seed will, well, fare in these non-majors, no? He’s managed only two top 30s in a combined nine starts in the first three Playoffs events from 2015-2017. To no one’s surprise, he thrived in his Playoffs debut last year with top 20s in all four events. At 78th, he was the lowest seed to reach East Lake. This time, he’s 14th and licking his chops. Erased all doubt over his commitment to excellence on the PGA TOUR in the last two months. His ability to sustain top-shelf form means he’s a target as the opening 8-seed. The 28-seed is seeking to become the first to successfully defend a title at the TOUR Championship. Since then, he’s recorded a trio of T2s, including at TPC Sawgrass and Carnoustie. Perhaps he’ll remember he finished a respective second, third and first in the FedExCup in last three Ryder Cup years. Opens 21st but dissatisfied with his season. Two-time champ at TPC Boston. Heating up again and, oh, how timely. T22-T17-T6 in last three starts. Seeded 33rd and fifth on TOUR in both total driving and GIR. Advanced to East Lake in five out of six attempts. A virtual lock to advance to East Lake for the second straight year, the 18-seed recorded two runner-up finishes and a pair of T5s this season. Inside the top 10 in both total driving and GIR. Chasing fourth appearance at East Lake but opens as the 40-seed. Was a respective 17th, 11th and ninth in the last three Playoffs. Still has ax to grind. Ninth in strokes gained: putting. Uncharacteristic stumble at Travelers (MC) is ancient history. He’s 4-for-4 since with a pair of top 15s. Seeded 22nd, he’ll be defending the BMW (different course). Third at TPC Boston in 2017. Started the season near the bottom of the graduate reshuffle category, yet debuts at 42nd in points. Modified his late schedule to be ready. Ranks seventh in strokes gained: putting. Opens 11th in points, so he’s a lock for the TOUR Championship, but with a Ryder Cup berth presumably on the line, he’ll need to improve on lackluster form over his last six starts. Enigmatic, mercurial, confusing. No matter how you define him, he’s compelling. Still cutting his teeth in the Playoffs, but he’ll appear in all four events starting ninth in points. Three-time winner in 2017-18 is seeded fifth, but he limps in without a top 30 in last four starts. Only one top 25 at TPC Boston in 11 tries (T16, 2011), but top 10s in last two starts at East Lake. Although he won at Greenbrier in early July, the 19-seed is a mild sleeper to contend for the FedExCup given his apt to get crazy-hot. T9 at Ridgewood in 2014 and T6 at TPC Boston in 2017. At 56th, he’s the lowest opening seed featured here. The terrific fit with Ridgewood is the key for the ball-striker. T18 last year at TPC Boston. Top 20s in his last three starts. The clubhouse leader for the Rookie of the Year award splashes as the 31-seed. Went 21-for-26 with a win among eight top 25s thanks to a reliable blend of accuracy off the tee and putting. The sharpshooter hung on to open 24th, but he’s managed only one top-35 finish in his last eight starts. Has experience at both Ridgewood and TPC Boston with a T9 at the latter in 2014. Championships in professional sports require a blend of success both during the regular season and in the postseason. This is no different on the PGA TOUR, but there’s many routes to the same destination. All three iterations of the Playoffs points system (2007-2008; 2009-2014; 2015-present) yielded FedExCup champions who opened the Playoffs as the No. 1 seed. Tiger Woods opened at the top en route to both of his FedExCup titles (2007, 2009). Jordan Spieth joined him in 2015. Dustin Johnson begins the 12th edition at No. 1, but the door is open for all comers. In the most impressive display of fulfilling promise, Billy Horschel opened 69th in 2014 and missed the cut in the first event to fall to 82nd. He then went T2-Win-Win to take the FedExCup. Two years later, Rory McIlroy won two Playoffs events, including the TOUR Championship in a playoff, to prevail after opening as the 36-seed and slipping two spots with a T31 to start the series. THE NORTHERN TRUST at Ridgewood Country Club is reserved for all 125 Playoffs qualifiers. The course in Paramus, New Jersey, hosted the opener in 2008, 2010 and 2014. Full-season points are carried into the tournament. FedExCup points earned in the Playoffs are quadrupled, thus making possible the surprises often experienced in any playoffs. After the conclusion of THE NORTHERN TRUST, the top 100 in the updated FedExCup standings will advance to the Dell Technologies Championship at TPC Boston in Norton, Massachusetts, the only site the tournament has ever known. Only the first two events in the Playoffs will include 36-hole cuts, but if more than 78 golfers survive either cut, there will not be a secondary cut of low 70 and ties. At the Playoffs midpoint, the top 70 will qualify for the BMW Championship, this year contested at Aronimink Golf Club in Newtown Square, Pennsylvania. It underwent full-scale modifications since it last hosted the Quicken Loans National in 2011. The top 30 in FedExCup points at the conclusion of the BMW Championship will comprise the field for the TOUR Championship at East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta. It’s hosted every edition of the event since 2004 and thrice prior. (Just as Monday’s Power Rankings for THE NORTHERN TRUST focused on only that tournament and Ridgewood as host, each of the tournaments will receive individualized Power Rankings.) No matter the scoring system, all of the top-13 seeds entering the Playoffs have always advanced to the TOUR Championship. Since 2015, 17 golfers who started the Playoffs outside the top 30 worked their way into the season finale. The worst opening seeds in each edition to turn the trick were Daniel Berger (46th in 2015), Sean O’Hair (108th in 2016) and Patrick Cantlay (78th in 2017). Also since 2015, a top-33 finish in THE NORTHERN TRUST has been enough to survive and advance to the Dell Technologies Championship. From there, all top 20s at TPC Boston spawned berths into the BMW. In each of the last three Playoffs, exactly four golfers who started the BMW outside the top 30 in points qualified for the exclusive field at East Lake. All but three of the 12 recorded a top-10 finish in the BMW: Harris English (32-seed in 2015; T19 at BMW), Xander Schauffele (32-seed in 2017; T20 at BMW) and Sergio Garcia (34-seed in 2017; T12 at BMW). Once in the TOUR Championship, if any of the top-five seeds wins the tournament, he will win the FedExCup, a five-year TOUR exemption and a spot in the Sentry Tournament of Champions (if not already eligible). In addition to that chance for all 30 in the field, carte-blanche scheduling for 2018-19 is already guaranteed. Exemptions into the first three majors, the WGC-HSBC Champions and the WGC-Mexico Championship will be extended. For those finishing inside the top 60 in points, spots in the CIMB Classic and THE CJ CUP @ NINE BRIDGES this fall are made available. The top 70 will receive coveted tee times for the Arnold Palmer Invitational and Memorial Tournament presented by Nationwide Insurance, both of which reward their champions three-year TOUR exemptions. The top 80 in the final FedExCup standings will be exempt into the Charles Schwab Challenge (at Colonial Country Club), while all 125 can book trips to the CareerBuilder Challenge, THE PLAYERS Championship and the RBC Heritage. All of the tournaments cited here are invitationals. So, for first-time Playoffs qualifiers in particular, they represent the next level of regular competition on the circuit. TOUR status and schedule guarantees aside, there’s also the not-so-small matter of the FedExCup bonus money up for grabs. The FedExCup champ will pocket $10 million of the $35-million prize fund. That trickles all the way down past the Playoffs participants. Even the top 25 who didn’t qualify (those ranking 126-150 in the overall standings) receive $32,000 apiece. ROB BOLTON’S SCHEDULE PGATOUR.COM’s Fantasy Insider Rob Bolton reviews and previews every tournament from numerous angles. Look for his following contributions as scheduled. MONDAY: Rookie Ranking, Reshuffle, Medical Extensions, Power Rankings (THE NORTHERN TRUST) TUESDAY*: Power Rankings (FedExCup Playoffs), Sleepers, Facebook Live, Fantasy Insider WEDNESDAY: One & Done THURSDAY: Champions One & Done * – Rob is a member of the panel for PGATOUR.COM’s Expert Picks for PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf presented by SERVPRO, which also publishes on Tuesdays.
The picks are in, and Tiger Woods has picked … well, himself, along with Tony Finau, Patrick Reed and Gary Woodland to round out the U.S. Team that Woods will captain next month at the Presidents Cup in Australia. It’s going to be highly entertaining at Royal Melbourne, especially if Tiger keeps talking about himself in the third person as he did Thursday night when Tiger the captain was citing the merits of Tiger the player. RELATED: Tiger makes his captain’s picks | International Team Captain Els announces picks | Youth movement for Internationals “He’s made, what, nine Cups and he’s played in Australia twice in the Presidents Cup, so this will be his third appearance as a player,â€� Woods said before catching himself and chuckling slightly. “I find it interesting talking in the third person.â€� Fifteen more things of interest: • I asked Tiger how the conversation went with assistant captains Fred Couples, Steve Stricker and Zach Johnson concerning himself as a potential captain’s pick. He relayed a story prior to winning The ZOZO Championship in Japan three weeks ago, his only start since undergoing arthroscopic surgery on his left knee two months earlier. “They said, ‘You’re on the team, you’re playing,’â€� Woods replied. “I said, ‘Hold on, slow your roll. I’m coming off of knee surgery. I don’t know how it’s going to be. Let me have Japan to test it and feel it and figure it out.â€� “Freddie was pretty ardent. ‘You’re on the team. Quit being stupid.’ I said, ‘No, hold on. I haven’t swung a club yet. Let me rehab this knee and get it going. Give me Japan and I’ll get back to you.’ “Well, I got back to him after Japan.â€� • Tiger’s success in Japan – winning his 82nd PGA TOUR event to tie Sam Snead in the record book – certainly was a big factor. But perhaps just as big was that his body held up after a long journey to Japan. It’s roughly 7,500 miles from Florida to Tokyo. Tiger realized he could make the trip and find a winning form, and now he hopes to do the same next month on another long trip. The distance from the Bahamas – where he’ll play the Hero World Challenge – to Melbourne is roughly 9,800 miles. “The long haul to Australia is very much like the one to Japan,â€� Woods said, “and seeing how my body felt and how I reacted in Japan and how I was able to play, it certainly gives me a lot of confidence that it will hold up over the long haul down to Australia. • Last year, Woods followed his memorable win at the TOUR Championship by immediately hopping on a plane to Paris to play for the U.S. at the Ryder Cup. He was visibly tired at Le Golf National, and his performance reflected that, as he lost all four of the matches he played, including a 2 and 1 loss to Jon Rahm in Singles. Now Woods once again will play the week before a team event. But he sees few similarities, and thus, fewer concerns. “I think the emotional stress and the emotional release of finally winning an event coming back from my back surgery, that took a toll on me a bit,â€� Woods said about last year. “So this is a different — a totally different animal. I’m playing the Hero World Challenge, not a TOUR event, even though we have World Ranking points. It’s a very easy week. I do have some duties there that the night, but overall, it’s a very easy week. And then our flight down to Oz will be easy — just long.â€� • Tiger said the key to balancing his captain responsibilities with his playing duties will be communication – with his assistants, with his players, asking them questions, putting their minds at ease, making sure everybody knows the schedules for practice, rest, workout, etc. “Having that direct communication with these guys,â€� Woods said. “The texts or phone calls have been free flowing, any time, doesn’t matter, just shoot me a text. I want that open line of communication. “There will be no stone unturned, and if you have an issue or a problem, let’s talk about it. Let’s figure it out.â€� • Tiger could limit himself to the minimum of two matches required for each player. One would be with a partner, and the other would be in Sunday Singles. That could help reduce the strain on his body. Right now, he’s not putting an exact number on it. “If I happen to play more, I have to play more,â€� he said. • Speaking of partners, Tiger did say he’s given specific thought to his own partner, having discussed that possibility with his assistants and some of his players. He wouldn’t reveal a specific name, of course. “It’s one of the other 11 players,â€� he said coyly. Of those 11 other players, he’s partnered with four of them in either a Ryder Cup or Presidents Cup – Patrick Reed, Bryson DeChambeau, Matt Kuchar and Dustin Johnson. • Here’s an incentive that might push Tiger to play more than two matches: He’ll arrive at Royal Melbourne with 24 matches played in his Presidents Cup career. The record is 26 held by longtime rival/U.S. teammate Phil Mickelson. Tiger is guaranteed to tie Mickelson, but maybe he finds a way to add a third match to sit alone atop the record books. • Speaking of Mickelson, his streak of making every U.S. Presidents Cup or Ryder Cup team ended with Thursday’s announcement. Mickelson had made 24 consecutive teams, including every Presidents Cup. He also saw his streak of 25-plus seasons inside the world top 50 also end recently. • One potential U.S. pairing might be Woodland, one of the captain’s picks, with automatic qualifier Matt Kuchar. They were partners in 2011 when the won the World Cup for the U.S. That’s the only team event the reigning U.S. Open champ has appeared in. For now, Woodland’s just happy to be on the team. “I’ll play with anybody,â€� he said. • Whether Mickelson was one of the five players Tiger called to deliver the bad news of not being a captain’s pick is unclear. The only player Woods identified that he called was Rickie Fowler, who was married this fall and has yet to play since the FedExCup Playoffs. Fowler has made six U.S. national team appearances, including the last two Presidents Cups. “That was a tough phone call,â€� Woods said. “Rickie’s a good friend of mine and I’ve known him for a long time. Kept it short and quick. No reason to make it a lengthy conversation. He’s obviously going to be very disappointed by it. I’ve been on that side. I’ve been there when the captain didn’t choose me, and I get it. It’s not easy. “But Rickie is a hell of a player and he’s going to start winning tournaments here. He’s fresh off of his new wedding, his bride and honeymoon, and he’ll be focused and he’ll start winning tournaments.â€� • Fowler, though, might be on the short list of players Tiger considers should he need a replacement for Brooks Koepka, who aggravated an injury to his left knee during the Asian Swing. Woods said he has until Wednesday morning of Presidents Cup week to make a final determination on whether Koepka is ready to play. “Right now we’re just waiting on Brooks’ rehab and playing back to golf and when he’ll be ready,â€� Woods said. “That’s open-ended and we’ll cross that bridge when we cross it.â€� • Speaking of roster adjustments … Because he’s now a playing captain, Woods will need his assistants to take up some of the slack while he’s on the course. Right now, Woods has three assistants, but he has room to add another if he wants. “It’s nice having that option,â€� Woods said. “… although we can roll with just the four of us that we have right now.â€� Woods’ counterpart, International Team Captain Ernie Els, has four assistants – Geoff Ogilvy, Trevor Immelman, K.J. Choi and Mike Weir. • Tiger becomes just the second player in Presidents Cup history to become a playing captain. Another American, Hale Irwin, was the first at the inaugural Presidents Cup in 1994. Unlike Woods, Irwin qualified without needing a captain’s pick, as he ranked seventh in points to earn an automatic spot. Irwin played three matches that week at the Robert Trent Jones Golf Club in Virginia. He and partner Loren Roberts beat David Frost and Fulton Allem in Friday Foursomes, 3 and 1. In Saturday Foursomes, Irwin and Jay Haas lost to Frost and Peter Senior, 6 and 6. Then in Sunday Singles in the opening match, Irwin beat Australian Robert Allenby, 1 up. • Eleven of the 12 players on the U.S. Team are ranked higher in the Official World Golf Ranking than the highest-ranking International player. The only American ranked below an International is Matt Kuchar at No. 22. Adam Scott (17) and Hideki Matsuyama (20) are currently above him. Understatement of the day from Woods: “We’re going to have a pretty solid team.â€� • Ages of the U.S. players in 1998, the only time the Americans lost the Presidents Cup: Justin Thomas, 5 years old; Patrick Cantlay, Bryson DeChambeau, Xander Schauffele, 6 years old; Brooks Koepka and Patrick Reed, 8 years old; Tony Finau, 9 years old; Webb Simpson, 13 years old; Dustin Johnson and Gary Woodland, 14 years old; Matt Kuchar, 20 years old; Tiger Woods, 22 years old.
