The Ultimate Guide to Golf’s Tour Championship
The 2023 Tour Championship, which is the concluding event of the FedEx Cup PGA TOUR playoffs, starts today. Only the top 30 players, based on their points earned over the past year, are eligible to participate, meaning the quality on display is second to none. Join me as I give an overview of the event, and share the latest Tour Championship betting odds.
The Tour Championship is a distinguished event on the PGA TOUR calendar and is a favourite with golf betting fans, serving as the concluding tournament of the season. Before 2007, eligibility was restricted to the top 30 money earners from the preceding season.
In 2007, the tournament underwent a significant transformation, becoming the culminating event of the four-tournament FedEx Cup Playoffs. Eligibility criteria shifted from money earnings to FedEx Cup points accrued throughout the competitive season. In 2019, the FedEx Cup Playoffs were streamlined to comprise only three events, and the scheduling of the Tour Championship was adjusted to late August as opposed to its previous mid-September timeframe.
Historically, the Tour Championship was succeeded by the PGA Tour Fall Series, which served as a platform for players to secure qualifying exemptions for the subsequent season. However, a reconfiguration of the PGA TOUR’s annual schedule in 2013 designated the Tour Championship as the season’s final event.
Regarding the tournament’s venue, it was hosted at multiple golf courses from 1987 to 1996. Since 1997, the event has alternated primarily between Champions Golf Club in Houston and East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta. East Lake has been the consistent host of the event since 2004.
Overview of the Tour Championship
The Tour Championship, currently hosted at East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta, Georgia, has several unique characteristics that distinguish it in the golfing world.
Firstly, the FedEx Cup operates on a winner-takes-all principle. Participants do not begin the tournament on equal footing; their starting positions are determined by FedEx Cup points accumulated throughout the season.
This format ensures that any player who barely qualifies, like Mackenzie Hughes, can potentially win the tournament and become the FedEx Cup Champion for the entire season.
This structure was designed to engage the casual viewer by allowing real-time tracking of FedEx Cup standings. It also eliminates the potential complication of conducting dual trophy presentations on the 18th green if the Tour Championship and FedEx Cup winners differ.
Secondly, the Tour Championship features an exceptionally small and selective field. It is the most exclusive tournament of the year, with only the top 30 players in the FedEx Cup standings eligible to participate.
It is by far the largest purse of the year, despite the modest size of the field, the purse is the greatest of the year, with the winner receiving a cool $15 million. By the week’s conclusion, the Tour will have distributed $60 million in FedEx Cup incentives. The money for last place isn’t bad either, with 30th place receiving $395,000. Not bad for a week’s effort.
The Tour’s Rich History
From its inception in 1987 until 2006, the Tour Championship operated under specific guidelines. The event extended invitations to the top 30 money earners on the PGA Tour, based on their performance in the preceding tournament. The championship was strategically scheduled for early November, one week after its European counterpart, the Volvo Masters. This timing facilitated participation from players affiliated with both the PGA Tour and the European Tour in their respective end-of-season championships.
Furthermore, the official money list for the PGA Tour season was finalised immediately following the conclusion of the Tour Championship. While additional tournaments were conducted between the Tour Championship and the end of the calendar year, the prize money from these events was not incorporated into the official earnings.
Additionally, the tournament’s structure diverged from typical golf events in that it did not include a 36-hole cut. Consequently, all participants who commenced the tournament were assured of making the cut and thereby earning prize money. This feature underscored the exclusivity and high-stakes nature of the event.
In 2007, the Tour Championship underwent a significant scheduling change, moving from its traditional November slot to mid-September. This shift marked the conclusion of the four-tournament FedEx Cup Playoffs. While the event continued to feature 30 players, as it had in previous years, the qualification criteria changed. Instead of being based on prize money, player eligibility was determined by FedEx Cup points accumulated during the regular PGA Tour season and the first three playoff events.
Starting in 2009, the points system was further refined to create a high-stakes scenario: if any player among the top five FedEx Cup point leaders entering the Tour Championship wins the tournament, they are also guaranteed to win the FedEx Cup.
In the realm of professional golf, it’s entirely possible for one player to clinch the Tour Championship while another takes home the FedEx Cup. Take, for instance, the scenario involving Tiger Woods and Justin Rose. Woods won the Tour Championship but finished second in the FedEx Cup standings. On the other hand, Justin Rose secured the FedEx Cup title despite finishing tied for fourth in the Tour Championship. This happened because Woods entered the Tour Championship ranked 20th in overall FedEx Cup points, while Rose was in second place.
Introduced in 2007, the Tour’s Fall Series plays a crucial role in determining the top 125 players who will qualify for the next year’s FedEx Cup, effectively making the Tour Championship no longer the final event of the season. However, starting in 2013, the Tour Championship regained its status as the concluding event of the PGA Tour season, which begins in October of the previous calendar year.
Since 2007, earning a spot in the Tour Championship also comes with an invitation to the prestigious Masters Tournament.
Before 2016, the 18th hole at East Lake Golf Club was a par 3, a configuration that many in the golf community felt lacked the dramatic flair fans crave in a tournament’s closing moments. Recognising the need for a more exhilarating finale, the PGA Tour took decisive action in 2016. They reconfigured the course layout for the Tour Championship by swapping the front and back nines. This change transformed the 18th hole into a par 5, injecting a much-needed element of excitement and suspense into the tournament’s concluding hole.
🚨#WATCH: PGA TOUR releases video with every shot from Tiger’s 2018 TOUR Championship 🏆 win pic.twitter.com/Tzrz25nGFD
— TWLEGION (@TWlegion) August 23, 2023
In the high-stakes world of the FedExCup Playoffs, the unique scoring system for the TOUR Championship adds an extra layer of strategy and excitement.
Here’s how it works: The player who tops the FedExCup points leaderboard after the first two playoff events enjoys a head start, teeing off the TOUR Championship at a cushy 10-under par. The player in the second spot isn’t far behind, starting the action at 8-under.
The intrigue continues down the leaderboard. The player ranked third in points begins at 7-under, followed by the fourth-ranked player at 6-under, and the fifth at 5-under. But don’t count out the rest of the field. Those ranked 6th to 10th kick off at 4-under, players 11th to 15th start at 3-under, those in the 16th to 20th spots begin at 2-under, players 21st to 25th are at 1-under, and finally, those rounding out the elite 30 start at even par.
This staggered starting system ratchets up the drama and rewards consistent excellence throughout the playoff series. It’s a brilliant way to keep both players and fans on the edge of their seats right up to the final putt.
For the purposes of the Official World Golf Ranking, only aggregate scores are considered, with no respect for beginning scores in relation to par.
Tour Championship – Previous Winners
As the Tour Championship is open only to a very elite field, some famous names have won over the years. In the table below, you can see all the winners since 1987.
| Tour Championship Previous Winners | ||
|---|---|---|
| Year | Winner | Final Score |
| 2022 | Rory McIlroy | −21 (−4) |
| 2021 | Patrick Cantlay | −21(−10) |
| 2020 | Dustin Johnson | −21 (−10) |
| 2019 | Rory McIlroy | −18 (−5) |
| 2018 | Tiger Woods | −11 |
| 2017 | Xander Schauffele | −12 |
| 2016 | Rory McIlroy | −12 |
| 2015 | Jordan Spieth | −9 |
| 2014 | Billy Horschel | −11 |
| 2013 | Henrik Stenson | −13 |
| 2012 | Brandt Snedeker | −10 |
| 2011 | Bill Haas | −8 |
| 2010 | Jim Furyk | −8 |
| 2009 | Phil Mickelson | −9 |
| 2008 | Camilo Villegas | −7 |
| 2007 | Tiger Woods | −23 |
| 2006 | Adam Scott | −11 |
| 2005 | Bart Bryant | −17 |
| 2004 | Retief Goosen | −11 |
| 2003 | Chad Campbell | −16 |
| 2002 | Vijay Singh | −12 |
| 2001 | Mike Weir | −14 |
| 2000 | Phil Mickelson | −13 |
| 1999 | Tiger Woods | −15 |
| 1998 | Hal Sutton | −6 |
| 1997 | David Duval | −11 |
| 1996 | Tom Lehman | −12 |
| 1995 | Billy Mayfair | E |
| 1994 | Mark McCumber | −10 |
| 1993 | Jim Gallagher Jr. | −7 |
| 1992 | Paul Azinger | −8 |
| 1991 | Craig Stadler | −5 |
| 1990 | Jodie Mudd | −11 |
| 1989 | Tom Kite | −8 |
| 1988 | Curtis Strange | −9 |
| 1987 | Tom Watson | −12 |
2023 Tour – Day One Tee Times (Round 1)
The Tour Championship starts today; below, you can see the scheduled tee times.
2023 Tour Championship Round 1:
- 4:26 p.m. BST — Jordan Spieth, Sepp Straka
- 4:37 p.m. BST — Emiliano Grillo, Tyrrell Hatton
- 4:48 p.m. BST — Jason Day, Sam Burns
- 4:59 p.m. BST — Adam Schenk, Collin Morikawa
- 5:10 p.m. BST — Taylor Moore, Nick Taylor
- 5:21 p.m. BST — Corey Conners, Si Woo Kim
- 5:32 p.m. BST — Sungjae Im, Tony Finau
- 5:43 p.m. BST — Xander Schauffele, Tom Kim
- 5:54 p.m. BST — Keegan Bradley, Rickie Fowler
- 6:05 p.m. BST — Tommy Fleetwood, Russell Henley
- 6:16 p.m. BST — Wyndham Clark, Matt Fitzpatrick
- 6:27 p.m. BST — Patrick Cantlay, Brian Harman
- 6:38 p.m. BST — Lucas Glover, Max Homa
- 6:49 p.m. BST — Rory McIlroy, Jon Rahm
- 7:00 p.m. BST — Scottie Scheffler, Viktor Hovland
As coverage starts at 17:00, it is likely that Taylor Moore / Nick Taylor will be shown first.
2023 Tour Betting Odds
Viktor Hovland delivered an exceptional final-round performance at Olympia Fields County Club, securing his second PGA Tour win of the season and his fifth career title. The Norwegian sensation carded an impressive ten birdies during his final round of 61, effortlessly sailing to victory.
Scottie Scheffler leads the pack with odds of 15/6 with bet365 in the betting arena for the upcoming Tour Championship. He starts the tournament at 10-under par, giving him a slight edge over Hovland, who begins at 8-under. Hovland’s own betting odds are pegged at 5/1, making it a tantalising prospect to see if he can outmanoeuvre Scheffler and claim the top spot.
A three-time FedEx Cup Champion, Rory McIlroy adds to the tournament’s allure. The seasoned pro from Northern Ireland will start the event at 7-under par. Hovland, who is no stranger to victory, having won last year’s Tour Championship and the 2016 and 2019 editions, is keen to secure back-to-back titles. Remarkably, he overcame Scheffler in the previous year despite starting six shots behind him. McIlroy’s betting odds for this year’s championship are set at 7/2.
“While the smart money will be on Scottie Scheffler, I fancy Rory McIlroy to retain his title. He starts three shots behind, but I believe he can produce the goods. 7/2 is pretty good odds for a golfer with a history of winning the Tour Championship.” – Luke Andrews, Betting Expert – UK Market.
The stage is set for an electrifying contest, where experience, skill, and strategic play will all come into focus.
| Tour Championship Betting Odds – The Top Five | ||
|---|---|---|
| Player | Starting Strokes | Best Price |
| Scottie Scheffler | 10 under | 15/8 |
| Viktor Hovland | 8 under | 5/1 |
| Rory McIlroy | 7 under | 7/2 |
| Jon Rahm | 6 under | 15/2 |
| Patrick Cantlay | 4 under | 20/1 |
The vulnerability of Scheffler’s lead makes the Tour exciting as he wasn’t particularly inspiring and has been incredibly frustrated with his golf recently.
There is optimism of a great competition, with Rory Mcllroy having the ability to give a legendary performance and overtake Scheffler at the summit for a second consecutive edition. The Irishman has the skill set to perform, and deep down in Scheffler’s mind, he would be working on perfection to try to maintain his lead.
The Tour Championship coverage is on Sky Sports Golf. The coverage begins at 17:00 today. The tournament favourite Scottie Scheffler is due to tee off at 19:00.
