Finally! PGA Tour’s controversial FedEx Cup format has been changed

The much-maligned FedEx Cup format has had an update of sorts. Here’s how the PGA Tour season finale will look from this year onwards…

For all the things the PGA Tour does right, the format for its FedEx Cup season-ending Tour Championship is not one of them.

Until now.

The current system, similar to the Gundersen method, sees the final 30 tee up at East Lake with a handicap based on their position in the FedEx Cup standings. But it has proven unpopular with the fans since being introduced in 2019 as the PGA Tour attempted to eliminate the previous scenario where two winners were crowned at the end of the tournament.

Turns out the players didn’t like it either, so they demanded change.

Speaking to Golfweek a few weeks back, Adam Scott said he joined the PGA Tour’s policy board to “help turn the FedEx Cup into one of the biggest trophies in sports – like the Stanley Cup or Lombardi Trophy”.

He added: “I thought I could give good perspective and help make it more straightforward, easy, and more respected throughout all sports.”

The only problem is he’s been “sidetracked” by all the “PIF stuff”.

Another player director, Camilo Villegas, was also keen. “We’ve been running in circles talking about it. We want to make the right change.”

The hard work has paid off.

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So what’s changing?

Well the good news is it looks like the handicap system is out. The format saw the leading player going into the Tour Championship start on 10-under-par, the player in second start on 8-under-par, and so on. Scott said he saw that system as “gimmicky”, while Sam Burns added that it was “confusing”.

But those – and there are a lot – who were hoping for a bracket-style match play playoff system are going to be disappointed. Scott said that particular idea was discussed “for months”, but ultimately explained that “it’s hard to wrap your head around you play one style all season and then your final event is an entirely different format”, and that “it seems compelling early in the week but when Nos. 1 and 2 lose early you’re in for a long weekend and there’s also not a lot of golf”.

Instead, the PGA Tour and the policy board members have come up with a three-point plan:

• Elimination of Starting Strokes: The TOUR Championship will be played as a 72-hole stroke-play event, with all players starting the tournament at even par. The best performer over the course of four rounds at the TOUR Championship will win the FedExCup.

• Adjustments to course setup: In response to data indicating fans want to see winning scores closer to par, the PGA TOUR Rules Committee will adjust its course setup approach to encourage more risk/reward moments throughout each round, further heightening the drama and competition to determine the FedExCup champion.

• Toughest tournament to qualify for: Already the most elite field in golf, the TOUR Championship field size will remain at 30 players in 2025. The Player Advisory Council is studying the qualification system of future years to raise the stakes on the entire FedExCup season and reinforce the TOUR Championship as the hardest tournament to qualify for.

PAC member and reigning FedEx Cup champion Scottie Scheffler said: “We want the Tour Championship to be the hardest tournament to qualify for and the FedExCup trophy the most difficult to win.

“Shifting the Tour Championship to a more straight-up format with a tougher course setup makes it easier for fans to follow and provides a more challenging test for players – which brings out the best competition.”

There is also talk that the monster $25 million bonus dished out to the FedEx Cup champion may be reallocated in future.

Scheffler’s on board.

“I really don’t like talking about because I think it’s silly, but I think the way the finances are going to be is more leaning towards the reward for a great regular season and some payouts that way, versus just your performance at the Tour Championship,” the World No.1 explained.

“That’s not why we compete. I don’t compete for the financial benefit at the end, I care much more about winning the Tour Championship than I do winning the money for the Tour Championship.

“I want to win the FedEx Cup because it’s the race over the course of the whole season. You have to play great golf to finish in the top 30 for the entire season, and you’ve got to show up at the right time and play great golf.

“Think about The Players, think about the major championships, you have to play well at the right time, and that’s just part of being in competitive sports. Look at the Patriots, they won 18 games one year and they lost the 19th and it looks like a failure for a season. Now, they had a great year, and they didn’t win the Super Bowl. At the end of the day you have to perform when it matters the most.

“I think now with the format we have, we have a great format of a 72-hole golf tournament. If I want to win the FedEx Cup, I have to play well at the last week of the season, and it’s just simple as that.”

And while it might not seem like a lot of change for now – largely because the PGA Tour season is almost halfway done – there is scope for more in the future.

Scott was on hand to explain that one.

“It might be impossible to change everything this year because we can’t change points and this, that and the other so hopefully this year will be a bridge to next year,” the Australian said.