The second leg of the FedEx Cup Playoffs begins Thursday at Wilmington Conutry Club in Wilmington, Delaware, at the BMW Championship. That means only the top-70 players from the PGA Tour FedEx Cup standings qualified and are shooting for the season-long prize, the FedEx Cup.
Only 68 players will tee it up, and from there, only the top 30 in the standings advance to the Tour Championship at East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta. The winner of the FedEx Cup Playoffs will take home $18 million and the FedEx Cup.
Cameron Smith, No. 3 in the FedEx Cup standings and into next week’s field, won’t tee it up at the BMW Championship, withdrawing Monday.
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Here’s a closer look at some names in the FedEx Cup points standings, including those who are on the bubble and others who need a big week to make the Tour Championship.
J.J. Spaun, who won the Valero Texas Open in April, led or co-led after the first three rounds of the FedEx St. Jude Championship, but a final-round 78 derailed his chances for a second win this season. He could’ve been locked into the Tour Championship, but now he’s No. 30 and the last person in heading into the BMW Championship.
On the other side of the coin, Aaron Wise is the first person out of the top 30 cutoff, but is just two FedEx Cup points behind Spaun. He has made the cut in his past three starts, including a T-31 at the FedEx St. Jude Championship, and will need a minimum finish of 65th to advance.
Lucas Glover was the biggest mover in the FedEx Cup standings during the first playoff event, jumping 87 spots from No. 121, barely making the field, to No. 34, on the cusp of the Tour Championship. He finished T-3, his best result this season. Yet there remains work to be done to make it to East Lake Golf Club, needing to finish at least 43rd.
Lowry was inside the top 30 heading into the FedEx St. Jude Championship, but even after making the cut and finishing T-46, he dropped nine spots in the standings to No. 37. He’s 56 points outside of the cutoff, so with extra FedEx Cup points up for grabs, a finish 38th or better could propel him inside the top 30.
Another one of the big movers in Memphis was Trey Mullinax, who won for the first time in his PGA Tour career in July at the Barbasol Championship. He finished T-5 in Memphis, moving him 30 spots up to No. 40 in the standings. He’ll need another strong week, a finish of 30th or better, in Delaware to make his first Tour Championship.
Joohyung “Tom” Kim, who became the second-youngest PGA Tour winner since World War II two weeks ago at the Wyndham Championship, is at No. 25 in the FedEx Cup standings after a T-13 in Memphis, up nine spots from where he started the week. He’s nearly 100 points above the cut line as it stands, but another strong week would guarantee Kim his first trip to East Lake.
Adam Scott moved up 37 spots to No. 42 in Memphis with his T-5 finish, and he put together a strong Sunday with a 4-under 66 to move up the leaderboard and FedEx Cup standings. He has made six straight cuts and will need another strong week – Scott must finish 23rd or better – to move inside the top 30.
A PGA Tour rookie, Davis Riley has six top 10s this season and finished second at the Valspar Championship. He finished T-31 at the FedEx St. Jude Championship and sits at 26th in the standings, but he dropped three spots last week. To guarantee his spot at East Lake Golf Club, Riley will need another strong finish.
Currently at No. 32, Maverick McNealy finished tied for 31st in Memphis and dropped one spot in the FedEx Cup standings. He has made the cut in all but five of his 26 starts this season, including five of his past six. McNealy will have to finish at least 50th at Wilmington Country Club to make it to Atlanta.
Sahith Theegala quickly became a fan favorite this year. He finished tied for 13th in Memphis and moved up 12 spots in the FedEx Cup standings to No. 27. Although Theegala doesn’t have a win this year, he has five top 10s, including a second- and third-place finish. To guarantee a spot at the Tour Championship, a high finish would be paramount.