The 2014-15 PGA Tour season comes to a close this week as newly minted world No. 1 Jason Day looks to win the FedEx Cup.
Day has been saying for years that he can and will become golf's top-ranked player, and after a six-shot win at the BMW Championship he did just that. The 27-year-old Australian, was 10th in the world in June, but wins in four of his past six starts vaulted him to the top.
Now, his attention will shift back to the playoffs and the $10 million bonus that comes with winning the FedEx Cup. Points have been reshuffled so anyone in the top five can win it all with a win this weekend.
Starting Thursday, the TOUR Championship will be played at East Lake Golf Club near Atlanta. Thirty players are in the field. The final round is Sunday (local time).
The restructuring of points has been viewed as controversial, but it makes sense for the PGA Tour to want more intrigue in its final event.
The top five includes Jordan Spieth, Rickie Fowler, Henrik Stenson and Bubba Watson. Stenson is the only player to finish in the top 10 in all three playoff events thus far — two runner-up finishes and a tie for 10th last week.
Fowler is the only player other than Day to have won a playoff event this year, when he surged ahead to win the Deutsche Bank Championship. He also finished in a tie for fourth last week and looks poised to go toe to toe with Day in Atlanta.
Here are this week's top players:
Jason Day (FedEx Cup standing: 1) — Can anyone beat this guy? Spieth didn't seem to think so when he said he should have paid admission when playing alongside him on Thursday. All jokes aside, Day finished 17 under or better in his past four wins and clearly has a leg up on the field. It will take a lot to best Day.
Jordan Spieth (2) — Spieth showed signs of life last week after missing consecutive cuts for the first time in his career to start the playoffs. He seems thoroughly in awe of Day right now, though, so it might be asking a lot for him to win.
Rickie Fowler (3) — Fowler, out of all the challengers, poses the biggest threat to Day. He is in form, confident and ready to etch his name into the same stone as Spieth, Day and Rory McIlroy.
Henrik Stenson (4) — Stenson, 39, has had a tumultuous season filled with heartbreak and a nasty flu. Yet, the stoic Swede has a great shot at redemption with a win this week. He won here in 2013 en route to hoisting the FedEx Cup and could do it again this week.
Bubba Watson (5) — Watson has claimed all postseason that the first three events don't matter. Well, Bubba, now is your time to shine. In all fairness, he does have two top 10s in the three events so his actions might speak louder than his words. Watson, like Fowler, deserves to be watched.
Rory McIlroy (11) — McIlroy is outside the top five but still has a chance to make an impact this week. Last week's tie for fourth was his first top 10 since the U.S. Open and the first time he put four good rounds together since his win at the Wells Fargo back in May. He looks like a guy lacking motivation right now, so maybe Day convincingly displacing him will provide some.
Zach Johnson (6) — Johnson rests in the unfortunate position of a top guy who still needs help to win. It's tough to imagine someone outside the top 10 winning the FedEx Cup, but he has proved why it's tough to count him out.
Dustin Johnson (7) — D.J.'s tie for seventh last week was his third top 10 in his past four starts. He is hitting the ball as well as anyone — maybe with the exception of Day — so all he needs is a little more consistency on the greens.
Brooks Koepka (25) — Beware the out-of-form golfer? Sure, Koepka's postseason hasn't been a bright spot in his young career, but he entered the playoffs with four top 10s in his previous five starts. Rumor has it he's upset about not being selected for the Presidents Cup, so what better way to prove the captain wrong than a clutch win in the season's final event.
Daniel Berger (9) — Berger roared back into FedEx Cup contention with two consecutive top-12 finishes, including an impressive runner-up last week. He burst onto the scene early in the year with a playoff loss to Padraig Harrington at the Honda Classic but lost his game in the middle of the season.
Others to watch:
Patrick Reed (10)
Justin Rose (12)
Matt Kuchar (21)