Ryan Armour – Syndication Server

FedEx Cup Fall: Here’s what PGA Tour pros think of the seven-event series (and it’s not all good)

“It’s unfortunate for the events, for the fans and at least locally, it kind of sucks,” Doug Ghim said.

SAINT SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. – In reviewing this new version of the FedEx Cup Fall, the PGA Tour has to be thrilled with some of its winners: Sahith Theegala’s debut win in Napa; Tom Kim’s repeat in Las Vegas; Collin Morikawa’s winless drought ends in Japan, the country of his ancestors; Erik van Rooyen’s back-nine 28 and emotional win in Cabo; Camilo Villegas’s feel-good story in Bermuda; and capped off by Ludvig Aberg’s 61-61 weekend here at the RSM Classic. The Sunday drama didn’t disappoint.

Underneath the surface, not everyone was so happy, particularly Jimmy Walker. who vented about how he had to keep battling for three additional months to keep his card. (He slipped out of the top 125 and will have conditional status playing out of the Nos. 126-150 category next season.)

Instead of the start to a new wrap-around season, the top 50 locked up their cards at the end of the regular season and no longer had to worry about falling behind in the full slate of tournaments. Rather, those without exempt status had to play on during a seven-event points chase to retain status for the 2024 season, which begins in January. (The Fall also lost two events — CJ Cup and Houston Open — both of which joined the FedEx Cup regular season, with CJ taking over title sponsorship of the Byron Nelson in Dallas and the Houston Open being promoted to a date in the spring.)

The top players finally got the off-season they’d been begging for and the rank-and-file still got several playing opportunities with purses of at least $8 million, full FedEx Cup points on the line and a chance to qualify for two early-season Signature Events for those who finishing in ‘The Next 10’ in the final point standings. As Peter Malnati put it, the FedEx Cup Fall was “fun and exciting, unless you’re one of the ones trying to keep your job and then it’s a strain.”

Peter Malnati lines up a putt on the third green during the second round of the 2023 Butterfield Bermuda Championship at Port Royal Golf Course in Southampton, Bermuda. (Photo: Marianna Massey/Getty Images)

In theory, there was something for players of all skill levels to play for – even the top 50 could earn additional years to their exempt status and qualify for tournaments such as the Masters and the Sentry with a win if not already in those fields – but was it a win-win for fans and sponsors too? Only a used car salesman could make that sell, and it begs the question: will the Tour continue to secure sponsors willing to foot the bill for tournaments where the big names barely played, if at all?

Several pros expressed their concern for the future of the fall schedule, which will become increasingly important for players fighting for status for the upcoming season.

“It’s tough for me to see how it’s going to be sustainable,” said Mark Hubbard, one of six players to compete in all seven fall tournaments. “For me, I think there was a noticeable difference in the tournaments and just like how much the course kind of rolled out the red carpet for us and whatnot, you know, just little stuff like courtesy cars or hotel room blocks or the food. Everything just kind of felt like they were probably trying to save a little bit of money because they’re not getting, you know, the turnout, they’re not getting the big names.”

He continued: “I feel bad for a lot of those tournaments like a Jackson (Mississippi, home of the Sanderson Farms Championship) that have worked so hard to become a great event and, you know, now they’re gonna get zero of the top guys coming to their event, ever. It’s just tough for me to see how those [$8 million] purses are going to stay high and, you know, those tournaments are going to want to continue to be big events and there’s just no one coming there.”

“We have a lot of great events this time of year and if they want to host a PGA Tour event they should be allowed and the membership should support it,” veteran pro Ryan Armour said. “A lot of the top guys were looking for time off and if this is what they want, they got it.”

The lack of big names was most pronounced in Las Vegas, where several local pros elected to skip this year, and a sponsor exemption given to the LPGA Tour’s Lexi Thompson brought some much-needed attention.

“More guys would show up for Vegas, for Napa, it’s unfortunate for the events, for the fans and at least locally, it kind of sucks,” said Doug Ghim.

“Vegas is one of the biggest changes. Last year I wouldn’t have gotten in and this year I was in by 20 or something,” said Kramer Hickok.

But Davis Love III, who has hosted the RSM Classic in the fall for the last 14 years, said he’s seen several iterations of the fall during his 30-plus-year career that landed him in the World Golf Hall of Fame, and expects the fall portion of the schedule to continue to evolve.

“It hasn’t looked the same in any five-year period for a long, maybe my whole career,” Love said last week. “Hopefully, it just continues to improve, they come up with new ideas … I think it’s just going to continue to improve, but I don’t know what that is.”

The Tour can only hope that whatever it dreams up next will generate a collection of stories and winners as good as this year.

[lawrence-auto-related count=1 tag=451202788]

Top 50 or bust? Why advancing in FedEx Cup Playoffs this week offers huge head start for 2024 PGA Tour season and not everyone is happy about it

Only the top 50 on Sunday will advance to next week.

[anyclip pubname=”2122″ widgetname=”0016M00002U0B1kQAF_M8171″]

GREENSBORO, N.C. — Justin Thomas fell to the ground Sunday at Sedgefield Country Club when his pitch shot at 18 hit the flagstick but wouldn’t drop, leaving him on the outside looking in at No. 71 in the final regular season FedEx Cup point standings.

The FedEx Cup Playoffs begin at the FedEx St. Jude Championship in Memphis, with the top 70 players in the standings through the Wyndham Championship qualifying (down from 125 in 2009-2022). The top 50 players after the first event will advance to the BMW Championship and also qualify for all eight Signature Events (formerly known as the Designated Events) on the PGA Tour schedule in 2024.

The level of disappointment that Thomas experienced on being left out of the playoffs is only expected to be ratcheted up this week. Those moving on to the BMW in Chicago next week will gain admission to a world of $20 million purses, jacked up FedEx Cup points and limited field, no-cut events with guaranteed paydays in many cases. (The Players Championship will still have a full field and cut to 65 and ties while the Genesis Invitational, Arnold Palmer Invitational and the Memorial will have fields of no more than 80 players and a cut to 50 and ties.)

Two tours?

“I don’t like the idea of creating two tours, which is what it’s doing,” said veteran pro Brandt Snedeker. “I don’t think it’s good for golf, for our tour, for our sponsors.”

Fellow veteran pro Kevin Streelman, who previously served as a player director on the board and remains involved as a member of the Player Advisory Council, argued that the player who ends up at No. 50 receives too much of a jumpstart on keeping his card and remaining in the top 50 compared to the player who finishes No. 51.

2023 3M Open — Kevin Streelman hits his tee shot on the 11th hole during the second round of the 3M Open. (Photo: Matt Krohn/USA TODAY Sports)

“It seems like a pretty extreme reward,” he said.

Ryan Armour, a fellow member of the PAC, who dubbed rank-and-file players of his ilk “the mules” of the organization, agreed.

“The fifth ranked player on the PGA Tour and the No. 55 player on the PGA Tour, why should their schedule be so vastly different than what they are going to become next year?” said Armour when he joined the 5 Clubs podcast. “There is a big discrepancy between No. 5 and 55, but there isn’t between No. 49 and 55. That to me is what irked everybody.”

Fewer events, more points at the majors

In 2024, the season returns to a calendar year, running from January through September’s Labor Day Weekend and condensed from 44 to 36 events, plus three playoff tournaments. Meanwhile the number of limited-field events increase from two (Sentry Tournament of Champions and WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play) to eight. Add in that 750 FedEx Cup points will be allocated to the winners of the four majors and the Players Championship, an increase from 600, and 700 for the Signature events, up from 550, compared to 500 for winners of regular full-field events and 300 to winners of opposite-field events, and it’s clear how membership in the top 50 has its privileges.

It’s unprecedented change and has many players who won’t be in the top 50 concerned that the deck is stacked against them.

Michael Kim lines up a putt on the 18th green during the third round of the 2023 Wyndham Championship. (Photo: David Yeazell-USA TODAY Sports)

“My initial reaction was, ‘What the hell is this?’” said Michael Kim, who finished No. 79 and missed the playoffs. “I’m trying not be too knee-jerk reaction.”

Players outside the top 50 still will have other avenues to qualify for the Signature events. Thomas, for instance, is No. 25 in the Official World Golf Ranking and players in the top 30 will be automatically eligible. Should his ranking no longer satisfy the criteria, he likely would be a popular candidate for one of four sponsor exemptions.

The Tour also created categories called the “Next 10” and the “Swing 5.” The Next 10 is “composed of the top 10 members, not otherwise exempt,” from the current FedEx Cup standings. The Swing 5 are the “top five FedEx Cup points earners, not otherwise exempt, from the swing of five full-field and additional events that precede each signature event.”

‘Path is stacked against you’

Speaking earlier this season, Rory McIlroy proclaimed, “You play well for two or three weeks, you’re in a (signature) event. You know, then, if you keep playing well, you stay in them.”

But that may be an oversimplification. Will the 30 Korn Ferry Tour grads, 10 DP World Tour grads and five PGA Tour Q-School grads get enough starts on the West Coast Swing? They also may endure a three-week sabbatical in the middle of the season if they don’t qualify for the U.S. Open. For those who do play their way in, how can they sustain energy to make the opportunity a success? If they don’t play well, they’ll be right back in the full field event and likely gassed from playing upwards of five events in a row.

“They are giving you opportunities to play your way in, but the path is stacked against you,” said 2019 U.S. Open champion Gary Woodland, who remains exempt to the four majors and hopes to play his way into the invitationals or else receive sponsor invites. “The top guys had leverage at the time, they had Jay (Monahan) in a tough spot. Jay was losing guys left and right and the guys that wanted to stay made a play and set the Tour up in their favor. I don’t have a problem with that. The sponsors will benefit from having more of the top players playing every week. Is it good for the Tour as a whole? Only time will tell. If you play well, you will be rewarded and that’s probably how it should be.”

The Tour has crunched the numbers, running over a thousand simulations, and predicts the churn of players being replaced in the FedEx Cup top 50 year after year to be between 14 and 22 players.

“I wouldn’t have thought that,” said Peter Malnati, one of the player directors on the board, noting earlier this year, “It seems kind of hard to believe.”

Play well and you’re in

Webb Simpson, another player director on the Tour’s board who voted in favor of the Signature events despite being outside the top 50, said he believes the Tour created enough play-in opportunities – some 20 per event – to reward the hot hands.

“I’ve always had the attitude that you adapt to how the system changes and if you play good enough you’ll be in those fields. I know some guys probably have a problem with that statement, that there needs to be more fair opportunities for everybody, but if you play well enough you’ll get in them,” he said. “I think at the end of the day, the PGA Tour is not here to showcase the best 200 players in the world. I think we’re here to showcase the best 75-100 players in the world. I think that’s what fans want, TV wants, and some people may not like that but that’s the truth. Sure, we want to take care of everybody as much as we can but at the end of the day, can guys qualify for these? Absolutely.”

[lawrence-auto-related count=4 category=1375]

On a windy day, Bermuda is a breeze for tourney leader Ryan Armour

On a blustery day, Ryan Armour handled Port Royal Golf Club better than most to grab the lead at the Bermuda Championship.

High winds nearly knocked Ryan Armour over on the 15^th hole at Port Royal Golf Club, but it couldn’t knock him off the top of the leaderboard at the Bermuda Championship on Friday morning. Scores were kept high by a frisky, fickle southwesterly wind that puffed about the course, gusting to 35 mph, and nudging golf balls in all directions.

“I enjoy the challenge of it. Today was really hard,” Armour said. “We didn’t know whether to say get up, get down, what to tell it.”

Armour did better than most, following up his 7-under 64 in the opening round with a 1-under 70 and a one-stroke lead over Kramer Hickok among the early wave of finishers.

Armour, 44, made birdie on three of his first five holes to get to double-digits under par, but canceled them out with three bogeys before he tacked on one last circle on the card with a birdie at the par-5 17^th. Armour didn’t just enjoy the battle; he enjoyed the Robert Trent Jones Sr., layout in Southampton, Bermuda.

BERMUDA: Leaderboard | TV info, tee times | Photo gallery

“What I really love about this place is it’s unique. Every day could be different, it depends on where the wind’s coming from,” he said. “You’ve got to hit so many different shots off the tee, so many different shapes off the tee. You can’t just go over everything like, I hate to say it, like kind of we’re playing every day on the PGA Tour.”

The wind sent scores skying in the second round with five players posting numbers in the 80s and former British Open champion Henrik Stenson withdrew with a foot injury after playing his first nine holes in 43. On the oceanside, par-4 15^th, Armour was nearly blown off course.

“I had a chip behind the green and on my backswing I got blown and like I had the grass mark right on the toe of the club and I’m like, wow, I almost missed that chip shot. So I was happy to get out of there with 4,” he said.

Armour has missed the cut in three of his first four starts during the Tour’s 2020-21 season and seven of his last nine dating back to July. As one of the shorter hitters on Tour, Armour has tried chasing more distance and realized he’s better off focusing on what makes him great.

“I was trying to just get it from a high-260s carry to a mid-280s carry. I just kind of went crooked and I can’t play golf that way,” he said. “I don’t hit it long enough to play out of the rough. So, for me, fairways, give myself as many opportunities as I can and try and hole some putts.”

Armour didn’t earn his first victory until age 40 at the Sanderson Farms Championship, and has been a steady performer the last few years after bouncing back and forth between the Tour and Korn Ferry Tour. As for win No. 2? it could be blowing in the Bermuda wind.

“I did what I could out there today to get it under par,” Armour said. “I can’t stress how difficult it really was out there.”

[vertical-gallery id=778072677]

[lawrence-related id=778072757,778072703,778072728]

Ian Poulter contends in return to Muirfield, Patrick Reed rallies and Jordan Spieth struggles

We recap Ian Poulter and Patrick Reed’s finishes Saturday at Muirfield Village during the Workday Charity Open.

DUBLIN, Ohio – Ian Poulter hadn’t played Muirfield Village Golf Club since an undistinguished run of attempts that ended in 2009.

The English golfer lives most of the year in the United States, but his family – he and his wife have four children – have spent recent summers back home.

“It’s been 11 years since I’ve played here, which is quite crazy when I think about it,” Poulter said after shooting a 3-under 69 on Friday to finish 36 holes at 7 under in the Workday Charity Open. Poulter, 44, trails leader Collin Morikawa by six.

“I played here for a number of years and pretty much liked the place but never had a finish,” he said.

In five years of playing the Memorial, he didn’t finish better than tied for 30th. He has played the Wentworth tournament in England instead of at Muirfield Village.

Updates | By the rankings | Tee times, TV | Photos | Leaderboard

“Tournaments are tournaments and some have to be sacrificed with a global schedule that a number of us are playing,” Poulter said. “It’s a shame it happened that way. To be able to come here and play two weeks in a row is really nice.”

He described his round Friday as “hot and moist.”

Poulter birdied the 11th, 12th and 13th holes to get to 8-under par. He flirted with disaster on 17 before making a 12-foot putt for bogey.

Poulter said he feels refreshed after not touching a club for much of the COVID-forced golf shutdown.

“Even though I didn’t hit balls for seven or eight weeks, I hit enough,” he said. “Then when it was practice time, I felt good because I felt a bit stronger, felt a bit fresher, and my swing was more on line than what it normally is when I take a long layoff. I feel good about my game. I feel fresh, and I’m holing a few putts, and it’s nice to see a few putts go in.”

Reed rallies

Patrick Reed struggled to gauge the speed of the Muirfield Village greens early, but he figured it out late. The 2018 Masters champion birdied four of the last six holes to finish with a 2-under 70 and stands at 6 under through 36 holes.

“I felt like I dialed down the speed pretty well on the putting green this morning,” Reed said.

But he hit what he thought was a good putt on No. 10 – his first hole – and it went more than 8 feet past the cup and he bogeyed the hole.

“From there I just kind of seemed a little timid on speed,” Reed said.

Eventually he told himself he needed to make some putts.

“So I was able to be a little more aggressive and more fluid with my stroke, which is kind of the biggest thing for me,” he said. “Don’t rush your stroke and just kind of be fluid with it.”

Armour, Spieth struggle

Ohio State product Ryan Armour didn’t expect to make the cut after his second consecutive even-par 72. The projected cut when he finished was 1-under par.

Armour said he struggled off the tee, which is normally a reliable part of his game.

Something else was missing – a sizeable Buckeye rooting section for the 1999 grad because of the ban on spectators.

“It’s eerily silent at all these events,” he said. “Especially coming here, being an Ohio State alum, I miss it. I definitely enjoy the interaction with the crowds and the ‘Go Bucks’ and the ‘O-H’s. I just hope in the near future we can get back to normal.”

Jordan Spieth is another prominent name in danger of missing the cut. He seemed safe to survive for the weekend with a birdie No. 5 – his 14th hole – but then double-bogeyed No. 8 to bring him back to even par.

[lawrence-related id=778053737,778053664,778053605,778053591,778053564]

Rocket Mortgage Classic third round hits and misses

What we liked and didn’t like from the third round action at the Rocket Mortgage Classic in Detroit.

The wind kicked up just a touch, but the scores still kept falling on Saturday during the third round of the PGA Tour’s Rocket Mortgage Classic at Detroit Golf Club.

No player put us on a 59 watch, but 21-year-old rising star Matthew Wolff gave everyone a lesson with his second straight round of 8-under 64, putting him at 19-under and atop the leaderboard entering Sunday’s final round. That gave the former Oklahoma State star a three-shot lead over Bryson DeChambeau and Ryan Armour.

Wolff wasn’t the only player to make some noise on Saturday. Here are the hits and misses from the third round.

Leaderboard | Live blog | Photos

Hit: Wesley Bryan

He put himself into contention with an early 65 that got him to 13 under. If you don’t know who Bryan is, you should. The 2017 RBC Heritage winner is the kind of fun player golf needs. He’s capable of epic smack talk during a round and he and his brother, George, have an awesome YouTube channel, Bryan Bros, where they perform crazy trick shots. It’ll be hard not to root for him.

Hit: Bryson DeChambeau

Clearly he was hurt by me assigning him a fake “miss” after the second round in order to spur him on. DeChambeau birdied two of his first four holes then went cold until he birdied the 13th and 14th. He almost drove the 399-yard green on the 13th. His second straight 67 wasn’t bad. At 16 under, he’s easily within striking distance of Wolff. But he could be running away with this thing. How a guy with this kind of power and talent doesn’t go full Tiger Woods on the field every week completely puzzles me.

Miss: Webb Simpson

The world’s sixth-ranked player shot 64 in the second round and was in position to take control of the tournament with a solid round on Saturday. But he struggled to a 1 under 71 on a day when 34 players were 3 under or better, even if there was a little wind. Simpson dropped out of a tie for the lead and is six shots back at 13 under.

[vertical-gallery id=778052082]

Hit: Ryan Armour

Great shooting by the — ugh — Ohio State graduate, who posted a 67 to put himself in prime position, tied with DeChambeau. Nice job by the … the … Buck … eye. Ugh. Hard to get that out. Wonder if he’ll refer to Detroit Golf Club as “that course up north” if he wins.

Miss: Brian Stuard

Brutal. The former Oakland University golfer from Jackson, Michigan started the round in great position at 9 under, just three shots back. He shot 73 and eliminated any chance of winning. His driver betrayed him. He made three bogeys and a killer double bogey on the par-5 10th hole, when he hit out of one fairway bunker into another. Golf is just mean sometimes.

Hit: Hideki Matsuyama

The world No. 23 had the move of the day when he shot up 42 spots into a tie for 13th when he fired a 65 to reach 12 under. Like world No. 17 Tony Finau, who shot 66, Matsuyama played early and took advantage of the smoother greens.

[lawrence-related id=778052641,778052651,778052601]

Ryan Armour uses ace to climb up leaderboard at Rocket Mortgage Classic

Count Ryan Armour among those who used the three-month hiatus to exhale and find some much-needed confidence.

Armour, a native of Akron, Ohio, and a former Ohio State star, had been struggling, missing six straight cuts before the pandemic set in. He broke 70 just one time during that stretch.

Since the break, however, Armour is a new man. He made the cut at his first event back, the RBC Heritage, and then shined in Connecticut at the Travelers Championship, firing four straight rounds in the 60s to finish T-7.

[vertical-gallery id=778052082]

The 44-year-old Armour, who has one PGA Tour win (2017 Sanderson Farms Championship) and one Korn Ferry Tour win (2016 Panama Claro Championship), is making noise in Detroit this week, as well. After a solid 69 on Thursday, Armour put together a string of five birdies in eight holes to get close to the first page of the leaderboard.

He then recorded an ace on the 157-yard No. 5, the first one on that hole this week, pulling him within two shots of the lead. He bogeyed the sixth hole, but rebounded with another birdie on No. 7, moving to 10-under par.

[jwplayer 3aRbCEnH]