Volatility is the name of the game with this new FedEx Cup points system, and that was made abundantly clear at the close of the business day Sunday at the Tour Championship.
Here’s a look at some of the big movers — up and down — on the FedEx Cup points list here at the final event. There was a lot of money both scooped up and left out there on the course Sunday.
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Big ascent: It was a very enriching week for Xander Schauffele, who came here in eighth place in the FedEx Cup and finished in second Sunday. That represents the difference in winning $5 million for second and $1.1 million for eighth.
Finishing four back of Rory McIlroy Sunday wasn’t so bad, Schauffele decided. “It was fun. There was plenty of excitement today. The heart rate was up for most of the round. I thought the course was set up really fair, and if you were in the fairway, it was gettable; and if you weren't, it was exactly what you thought it was. It was just a lot of fun.”
On Thursday Chez Reavie was 25th in the FedEx Cup. On Sunday, he was 8th. That 17-point rise made him an additional $655,000.
Jason Kokrak just got here to East Lake, as the 30th and final qualifier. He finished 14th, a $620,000 payout as opposed to the $395,000 sizable consolation prize for last place.
Big drop: Patrick Cantlay came to the Tour Championship second in the FedEx Cup standings, which pays out $5 million. After rounds of 70-71-75-73 he finished tied for 21st, and in line to make $478,000. Only a guess, but that’s probably still enough to a clear a profit for the week.
A second ace at No. 9
Call architect Rees Jones. It’s time to tear down No. 9 at East Lake and start over.
The daunting par 3 had not yielded a hole-in-one for the first 17 years East Lake hosted the Tour Championship. But it has been the site of two in the last two days. Schauffele aced it to finish the third round on Sunday morning, joining Reavie in the conqueror’s corner. It was the cornerstone of Schauffele’s third-round 67.
Schauffele played a 5-iron from the elevated 240-yard hole. It found the green and rolled softly for 20 feet into the center of the hole. It was Schauffele’s first career hole-in-one and warranted a high-five from playing partner Rory McIlroy.
“We wanted to play it probably 222 and I pulled it slightly, right at the pin and got a good bounce,” Schauffele said. “I’ve never had a hole-in-one, so I guess this is how it happens. You’ve got to get lucky.”
Snowman ruins Rose’s hot run
After seven holes, reigning FedEx Cup champion Justin Rose was 4 under par and observers were starting to ask about the course record. Any such talk of matching the 60 posted by Zach Johnson in 2007 evaporated one hole later, when Rose took a quadruple-bogey on the eighth hole — without hitting a ball in the adjacent lake.
Rose sailed his approach shot in the left rough, about 30 feet below the hole location, which was tightly cut into the corner of the green. His next three shots caught the bank and rolled back to him. He finally powered a wedge into the green and two-putted for an eight.
It was only the second eight recorded at East Lake this week. Gary Woodland had a triple-bogey for eight on the par-5 18th hole on Friday.
The disaster derailed any momentum Rose had built. He made just one more birdie the rest of the day and had a double bogey at the par-3 15th and a bogey at No. 16. Rose signed for a 72, leaving him tied for 26th at 3 over for the tournament.
Just list DJ as a DNP in these playoffs
Dustin Johnson finished off a most forgettable FedEx Cup playoff season with a 73 in Sunday’s closing round at East Lake. Of the 30 players who made the Tour Championship, his gross 13 over for these four days was the grossest. He was the only player in the field to shoot over par all four days. Next highest for the tournament was Lucas Glover, at 10 over.
Johnson’s struggles were hardly surprising, given how his game was trending. He didn’t break 70 in any of his last 10 playoff rounds, shooting a combined 15 over for that span.
"Mentally I think I'm just worn out," he told Golfweek following his round Saturday.
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