5 Things to Know about the 2019 TOUR Championship

It all ends here.  The 2019 TOUR Championship will mark the 33rd playing of the event, 19th at East Lake Golf Club, and the 13th since the PGA Tour launched the FedExCup season-long points race. 

 

The legacy of Atlanta hero and golf icon, Bobby Jones, and the rich history of East Lake Golf Club provides the ultimate backdrop for a race to the finish.  Jones established the measure of greatness in golf and now the top 30 players in the standings compete on Jones' home turf with a career-defining moment hanging in the  balance. 

Players have battled through 43 regular-season and two Playoffs events.  And this week every competitor is a contender.  And each of them has the opportunity to become a legend.  Here are five things you need to know about the season finale. 

Number 5 
Inside the Field 
Twenty-five of the top-50 players in the OWGR made it to Atlanta for the TOUR Championship.  World No. 1 Brooks Koepka is enjoying the first three-win season of his career, and is the only player on Tour to have won three times this season.  World No. 3 Rory McIlroy has put together one of his best seasons despite not winning a major, with two victories, and 13 top-10s (most on Tour). 

 

Justin Thomas has never finished worse than T7 in three previous appearances at East Lake, and enters the TOUR Championship as the No. 1 ranked player in the FedExCup Playoff standings (Thomas entered No. 2 in 2017 when he won the FedExCup Championship).  There are four first-timers in the field, including Sungjae Im (the youngest player at 21-years old), Abraham Ancer, Corey Conners, and Jason Kokrak. 

Number 4 
New Scoring Format 
The FedExCup points leader after the first two Playoffs events now begins the TOUR Championship at 10-under par.  The next four players will start at 8-under through 5-under, respectively.  And the next five will begin at 4-under, regressing by one stroke per five players until those ranked Nos. 26-30 start at even par.  This new staggered start has been received with understandable concerns, even if it was done to ensure the winner of the TOUR Championship is also the FedExCup Champion. 

 

There's no arguing the new format is simpler than in past versions.  However the most outlandish thing about this years playoffs is the wonky points system that quadruped once the Playoffs began.  Because of this, we won't have two of the year's major champions in the field.  And if the Tour really wants the FedExCup Playoffs to be received as something that can define a legacy similarly to prestigious major championships, this will need to change going forward. 

Number 3
Mo Money, Mo Problems? 
The reward for capturing the FedExCup Playoffs Championship this year?  $15 million (compared to $10 million last year).  That's more than Greg Norman made in his entire career.  And even the player who finishes dead last will walk home with $395,000 of the $60 million total pot.  And all the players have an idea what they would do with this kind of new wealth. 

 

Tommy Fleetwood said, "it would be very nice to carry around in the back pocket."  What size pants does he wear anyway?  Brooks Koepka said he'd use a lot of it on the new house he's building.  Glad he didn't say anything about thongs.  And Jon Rahm gave probably the most frugal answer, saying, "I would put it in a savings account for the future, because you never know what's going to happen."  A surprisingly levelheaded answer from the Spaniard known to get a little hotheaded on the course. 

Number 2 
A Foundation that Works 
Over the last decade, more than $30 million in proceeds from the TOUR Championship has been donated to the Atlanta community, including last year's contribution of more than $3 million to the East Lake Foundation, Grove Park Foundation, Purpose Built Schools Atlanta, and The First Tee of Metro Atlanta. 

 

Founded in 1995, the East Lake Foundation was formed to revitalize a suffering inner city neighborhood into a vibrant community where all residents can thrive. Brighter futures are being achieved through high-quality education, mixed-income housing and community wellness, and new employment creation and funding.  And with violent crime declining, and school test scores and property values surging, the future looks brighter than ever. 

Number 1 
East Lake Golf Course History 
East Lake is not only the host of one of golf's most prestigious and largest events.  It's also a world-class venue with incredible history.  East Lake is home to the oldest golf course in the city of Atlanta, and most notably serves as the home course of legendary golfer Bobby Jones. Jones. 

 

Jones resided in Atlanta and played his first and last games of golf at East Lake.  The club enjoyed one of its greatest milestones in 1930 when Bobby Jones completed the Grand Slam winning the United States Amateur, United States Open, British Amateur, and British Open in the same year. A lifelong amateur, Jones won 13 major championships throughout his career and retired from competitive golf in 1930.