This article is part of our Weekly PGA Preview series.
The end of another PGA Tour season is upon us, and we are just days away from the Super Bowl of golf. OK, so no one considers the Tour Championship the "Super Bowl" of golf, but at least we are down to just 30 golfers in the field, and let me tell you, this field is solid.
Sure, there's no Tiger and no Phil, but hey, those guys weren't playing well anyway. What we do have is a handful of golfers who are near the top of their games gunning for a $10 million prize. I'd say that's reason enough to watch. It's hard to get into the mind of a successful PGA Tour professional on a weekly basis; outside the majors, you never can tell when they are motivated and when they aren't. A $10 million prize, however, is universal motivation for just about anyone. For those in the field this week, a win at the Tour Championship is a significant prize in of itself, but for the lucky handful who can also claim the FedEx Cup title, well, that money is life-changing (as much as money can change someone who's already a millionaire). With motivation a non-issue this week, we should see the cream rise to the top. Then again, almost the entire field is cream this week.
This week: Tour Championship - East Lake Golf Club - Atlanta
Last Year: Henrik Stenson shot a final-round 67 on his way to a three-stroke victory over Jordan Spieth and
The end of another PGA Tour season is upon us, and we are just days away from the Super Bowl of golf. OK, so no one considers the Tour Championship the "Super Bowl" of golf, but at least we are down to just 30 golfers in the field, and let me tell you, this field is solid.
Sure, there's no Tiger and no Phil, but hey, those guys weren't playing well anyway. What we do have is a handful of golfers who are near the top of their games gunning for a $10 million prize. I'd say that's reason enough to watch. It's hard to get into the mind of a successful PGA Tour professional on a weekly basis; outside the majors, you never can tell when they are motivated and when they aren't. A $10 million prize, however, is universal motivation for just about anyone. For those in the field this week, a win at the Tour Championship is a significant prize in of itself, but for the lucky handful who can also claim the FedEx Cup title, well, that money is life-changing (as much as money can change someone who's already a millionaire). With motivation a non-issue this week, we should see the cream rise to the top. Then again, almost the entire field is cream this week.
This week: Tour Championship - East Lake Golf Club - Atlanta
Last Year: Henrik Stenson shot a final-round 67 on his way to a three-stroke victory over Jordan Spieth and Steve Stricker.
PLAYERS TO CONSIDER
Rory McIlroy
He's been hanging around the leaderboard each of the last three events, but he's just missing that final push. With the Tour Championship on the line as well as the FedEx Cup title, look for McIlroy to find that extra gear and pull out a win this week at East Lake.
Billy Horschel
It's not at all uncommon to see one guy get hot near the end of the FedEx Cup and carry it through the end of the playoffs. Horschel is on a roll, and there's no reason to think he'll slow much this week. Will he have enough to top a highly motivated McIlroy, though?
Rickie Fowler
Entering the FedEx playoffs, Fowler seemed like a logical pick to contend for the title, but his play has fallen a bit since the final major of the year. That said, he showed signs of a comeback last week and it wouldn't be surprising to see him play well to close the season.
Jim Furyk
Wouldn't that be something if Furyk broke his winless streak at this event? Funny thing is, he'll have a decent chance as he usually plays well here. He won this event in 2010 and finished inside the top-10 here in 2012.
Adam Scott
Call it a hunch, but I have a feeling Scott is about to make a run at the FedEx title over the next two weeks. That was obviously from last week because there is only one week left, but he did it again -- he hung around the top-10, but was unable make a move. Perhaps this is the week he makes that move.
PLAYERS TO AVOID
Matt Kuchar
A fairly disappointing playoff run for Kuchar this year. His prospects don't look good this week either as he rarely plays well at East Lake. Kuchar has only one top-10 at this event in four tries.
Jason Day
Bad news for Jason Day fans, we are back to wondering about his health once again. What appeared to be a serious run at the FedEx title has turned into a question if he can make it four more days without suffering another injury.
Jordan Spieth
It's been a crazy season for Spieth filled with mostly highs, but some lows as well. At this point I think he'll be happy to have it over with and regroup for next season. He did play well last week, but I don't think he has enough in the tank to make serious run this week.
Bubba Watson
Watson surprised many, including myself, by playing well last week in the thin air of Colorado, but we all know that he has a tendency of getting psyched out at courses he doesn't like. Considering he has only one top-10 at East Lake, he may be battling his mind all week.
Kevin Na
There's really nothing working in Na's favor this week. His game is not all that sharp, his track record at East Lake is poor and the field is loaded. There aren't many players to dislike this week, but Na is certainly one.
ONE AND DONE GOLFER
Last week: Rory McIlroy (T8) - $232,000; Season - $7,132,000
This week: Billy Horschel - Horschel is feeling it, and he has a chance to do what Stenson couldn't do last year and win back-to-back to close out the season.
YAHOO PICKS
Points: 5,302
Rank: 16,898
This Week:
Group A: Adam Scott, Rickie Fowler
Group B: Jim Furyk, Rory McIlroy, Billy Horschel, Webb Simpson
Group C: Sergio Garcia, Jimmy Walker
SURVIVOR PICK
Last week: N/A ; Streak - 1
This week: N/A - No more cuts this season.
