PGA TOUR Championship Preview 2016

2016 TOUR Championship
Dates: September 21-25, 2016
Where: East Lake Golf Club, Atlanta, Ga.
Par/Yards: 35-35–70/7,385 yards
Field: Top 30 in the FedExCup standings
2014 champion: Jordan Spieth
Purse: $8,500,000 /$1,530,000 (winner)
FedExCup: 2,000 points to the winner
Format: 72-hole stroke-play
Twitter name: @playofffinale
Facebook: www.facebook/TheTOURChampionship

A look at the 2015 TOUR Championship

• Jordan Spieth entered the week No. 2 in the FedExCup standings and walked away with a four-shot win in the TOUR Championship, thus becoming the 2014-15 FedExCup champion.
• Spieth became the youngest winner of the FedExCup and of the TOUR Championship at the age of 22 years, 2 months.
• The win was his sixth PGA TOUR win in his 83rd PGA TOUR start and the fifth of the season, becoming the sixth player since 1980 to win five or more times in a season: Tom Watson (1980), Nick Price (1994), Vijay Singh (2004), Tiger Woods (1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009 and 2013) and Jason Day (2015).
• Spieth was the first player in FedExCup history to miss the cut in the opening two Playoffs events and go on to win the FedExCup. With $12,030,465, Spieth broke the PGA TOUR record for most money won in a season.
• Singh (2004) held the previous record with $10,905,166, a difference of $1,125,299.
• Daniel Berger finished T12 at the TOUR Championship and No. 11 in the final FedExCup standings. Berger was the lone rookie and second youngest (Spieth) player in the field at age 22 years, 5 months and 18 days.

East Lake Golf Club

• Established in 1904, East Lake is the oldest golf course in the city of Atlanta. East Lake was the home course of World Golf Hall of Fame member Bobby Jones, and much of its clubhouse serves as a tribute to his accomplishments.
• Since 2004, East Lake has been the home of the TOUR Championship, the final event of the FedExCup Playoffs.
• The TOUR Championship was first played at the course in 1998.
• This year, the front and back nine holes at East Lake have been reversed for the TOUR Championship, providing significantly more drama on the finishing holes from past years.
• The final five holes, in particular, will have more potential for lead changes and provide more risk-reward opportunities, with the 18th hole now a challenging par 5 rather than a long par 3.

TOUR Championship storylines

• The TOUR Championship is the culmination of the PGA TOUR’s FedExCup season and the final of four FedExCup Playoffs events.
• Road to the TOUR Championship info:
  • The top 125 players on the PGA TOUR regular season FedExCup points list qualified for The Barclays.
  • The top 100 players on the FedExCup points list following The Barclays qualified for the Deutsche Bank Championship (The Barclays was won by Patrick Reed).
• The top 70 players on the points list following the Deutsche Bank Championship qualified for the BMW Championship (Deutsche Bank Championship was won by Rory McIlroy).
• The top 30 players following the BMW Championship advance to the TOUR Championship (BMW Championship was won by Dustin Johnson).
  • A points reset took place following the BMW Championship, giving all players in the field at the TOUR Championship a mathematical chance to win the FedExCup.
• The top five players in the FedExCup standings entering the TOUR Championship control their own destiny and will win the FedExCup title should they go on to victory at East Lake.
  • No. 1 – Dustin Johnson
  • No. 2 – Patrick Reed
  • No. 3 – Adam Scott
  • No. 4 – Jason Day
  • No. 5 – Paul Casey

FedExCup Champions

• 2007 – Tiger Woods
• 2008 – Vijay Singh
• 2009 – Tiger Woods
• 2010 – Jim Furyk
• 2011 – Bill Haas
• 2012 – Brandt Snedeker
• 2013 – Henrik Stenson
• 2014 – Billy Horschel
• 2015 – Jordan Spieth

TOUR Championship and FedExCup Notes

• Here is a year-by-year look at FedExCup champions and their performance throughout the FedExCup Playoffs in the years
  they won:

• Jordan Spieth (2015) and Brandt Snedeker (2012) are the only two past FedExCup champions at East Lake this year, and they have a chance to join Tiger Woods (2007, 2009) as the only two-time winner of the FedExCup.
• Sean O’Hair, at No. 25 heading into the TOUR Championship, is the only player remaining from those who entered the FedExCup Playoffs ranked No. 101 – 125 in the FedExCup standings.
• Paul Casey will make his third appearance at the TOUR Championship, advancing to the season finale with two runner-up finishes, but without a victory, in each of those three seasons.
• This season, Casey was second at both the Deutsche Bank Championship and the BMW Championship.
  • Last season, a T5 finish at the TOUR Championship followed playoff losses to James Hahn at the Northern Trust Open and Bubba Watson at the Travelers Championship.
  • In 2010, Casey had runner-up finishes at the World Golf Championships-Dell Match Play and BMW Championship before finishing T4 at the TOUR Championship.
• Rory McIlroy, winner of the 2016 Deutsche Bank Championship, is the first player in FedExCup history to win one of the first three Playoffs events and not be among the top-five players who control their own destiny heading into the TOUR Championship.
  • McIlroy is No. 6, just 29 FedExCup points behind No. 5 Paul Casey, heading to East Lake.
• Here’s the list of players who entered the BMW Championship outside the top 30 who advanced to the TOUR Championship:

• Here’s the list of players who entered the BMW Championship inside the top 30 who failed to advance to the TOUR Championship:

Rookies and the FedExCup

• Emiliano Grillo and Si Woo Kim are two of seven PGA TOUR rookies who qualified for the FedExCup Playoffs.
• Grillo and Kim are the only two who advanced to the TOUR Championship. In the history of the FedExCup Playoffs, no more than one rookie in a season has qualified for the TOUR Championship:

Miscellaneous Notes

• With one event remaining in the 2015-16 PGA TOUR Season, Dustin Johnson leads the PGA TOUR in Adjusted Scoring Average (69.174) with Jason Day (69.361) second in the category.
• The leader in Adjusted Scoring Average at the end of the season earns the Byron Nelson Award from the PGA TOUR and the Vardon Trophy from the PGA of America.
• During the 10th season of the FedExCup, a record 10 different players (Emiliano Grillo, Smylie Kaufman, Justin Thomas, Russell Knox, Kevin Kisner, Brandt Snedeker, Adam Scott, Jason Day, Dustin Johnson and Patrick Reed) have held the lead in the FedExCup standings this season, with Day holding the lead the longest period, a total of 11 weeks.
• Day and Johnson are the only players this season to have held the lead and regain it (Dustin Johnson).
• Scott held the lead in the FedExCup standings for nine weeks, the longest consecutive period this season.
• Below are the number of different players to hold the lead in the FedExCup standings by season:
  • 2015-16 10
  • 2014-15 6
  • 2013-14 6
  • 2013 6
  • 2012 9
  • 2011 9
  • 2010 8
  • 2009 6
  • 2008 5
  • 2007 6
• Twenty-eight of 43 stroke-play events in 2015-16 have been decided via playoff (12) or one stroke (16).
• Five players – Dustin Johnson (No. 1), Adam Scott (No. 3), Jason Day (No. 4), Jordan Spieth (No. 7) and Russell Knox (No. 8) all have multiple victories this season and made the TOUR Championship.
• Adam Scott (T4/The Barclays, 4/Deutsche Bank Championship, T4/BMW Championship) is the only player with top-10 finishes in the first three Playoffs events and is seeking to become the fourth player to finish inside the top 10 in all four FedExCup Playoffs events in a single season: Rory Sabbatini in 2007 (finished No. 4 in FedExCup); Padraig Harrington in 2009 (No. 7); and Dustin Johnson in 2012 (No. 8).
• No player has ever finished inside the top five in all four Playoffs events in the same season.
• Scott won the TOUR Championship in 2006; his best finish in six appearances since the start of the FedExCup era is T6 in 2011. His only other top 10 at East Lake was T9 in 2014, his most recent appearance in the season finale.
• Two of this year’s four major championship winners have qualified for the TOUR Championship. U.S. Open winner Dustin Johnson is No. 1 in the standings and PGA Championship winner Jimmy Walker is No. 10. Masters champion Danny Willett chose not to compete in the FedExCup Playoffs this season, while The Open Championship winner Henrik Stenson finished No. 36 and did not advance.
• Seven players are making their first appearance at the TOUR Championship this week. They are Russell Knox, Emiliano Grillo, Justin Thomas, Kevin Chappell, Si Woo Kim, William McGirt and Jhonattan Vegas.
  • With a victory, they would join Chad Campbell (2003), Bart Bryant (2005), Bill Haas (2011) and Henrik Stenson (2013) as players to win the TOUR Championship in their first appearance (not including Tom Watson’s win at the first TOUR Championship in 1987).]
• Si Woo Kim, at 21, is the youngest player in the TOUR Championship field, while Phil Mickelson, 46, is the oldest. Mickelson is the only player in his 40s at East Lake. The average age of the 30 contestants in this year’s TOUR Championship is 31 years, 6 months.
• Age breakdown for the 2016 TOUR Championship field:
  • 20-29 9
  • 30-39 20
  • 40+ 1
• Winners of the TOUR Championship in their 20s include:
  • Jordan Spieth (2015, 22 years, 2 months)
  • Tiger Woods (1999, 23 years, 10 months, 1 day)
  • David Duval (1997, 25 years, 11 months, 24 days)
  • Adam Scott (2006, 26 years, 3 months, 20 days)
  • Camilo Villegas (2008, 26 years, 8 months, 21 days)
  • Billy Horschel (2014, 27 years, 9 months, 7 days)
  • Billy Mayfair (1995, 29 years, 2 months 23 days)
  • Bill Haas (2011, 29 years, 4 months and 1 day)
  • Chad Campbell (2003, 29 years, 5 months, 9 days)
• Henrik Stenson (2013, Sweden) and Vijay Singh (2008, Fiji) are the two international winners of the FedExCup.
• Six international players have won the TOUR Championship: Mike Weir (2001, Canada); Vijay Singh (2002, Fiji); Retief Goosen (2004, South Africa); Adam Scott (2006, Australia); Camilo Villegas (2008, Colombia); and Henrik Stenson (2013, Sweden).
• There are 10 international players in the field representing nine countries outside of the United States:\
  • Rank Player Country
  • 3 Adam Scott Australia
  • 4 Jason Day Australia
  • 5 Paul Casey England
  • 6 Rory McIlroy Northern Ireland
  • 8 Russell Knox Scotland
  • 9 Emiliano Grillo Argentina
  • 17 Hideki Matsuyama Japan
  • 18 Si Woo Kim South Korea
  • 29 Jhonattan Vegas Venezuela
  • 30 Charl Schwartzel South Africa

Source: PGA TOUR