TOUR Insider: Player of the Year could be decided in FedExCup Playoffs

OLD WESTBURY, N.Y. – The FedExCup Playoffs will be a major determining factor in the votes of most PGA TOUR players as they contemplate their Player of the Year choice. Adding another layer of excitement to an already stacked four weeks of golf, the performance of those on the shortlist for Player of the Year will strengthen their pedigree with an impressive run in the postseason. And of course, others not yet in the full consciousness of the voters could yet leap out and surprise. “I don’t think you can even have the conversation until after East Lake to be fair,â€� former U.S. Open champion Geoff Ogilvy said. “These Playoffs are very important for Player of the Year.â€� While Justin Thomas, with wins at the PGA Championship, the CIMB Classic, Sentry Tournament of Champions and the Sony Open in Hawaii leads the contenders, he’s not a clear-cut choice just yet. He does have the bonus of shooting a 59 in Hawaii and a 63 at the U.S. Open. Jordan Spieth won The Open Championship, the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am and the Travelers Championship. He’s snapping at the heels of his friend. “The Playoffs are very important, this year. It’s a close race right now. I think it’s between four guys, in my opinion,â€� Spieth, who was the 2015 FedExCup champion and Player of the Year, said. “It’s a tremendous honor, having been there, it’s the MVP. You’re the MVP of the league. When you put it that way, it’s something that you want really badly. “So it’s a fight and it’s something that is keeping me going out and grinding at the end of a really good season.â€� Spieth admitted he felt slightly behind in the race but felt winning the FedExCup “would probably take care of it.â€� Thomas likes being the current favorite but adds, “I’d much rather hear you say that four events later than probably now.â€� While these two are the main contenders – ruling out others might be dangerous. Hideki Matsuyama – who enters the FedExCup Playoffs as the top seed – has won the World Golf Championships – HSBC Champions, the Waste Management Phoenix Open and the World Golf Championships – Bridgestone Invitational. While he is without a major it is important to note he has three runner-up finishes, one of which was the U.S. Open. He finished inside the top 14 of all four majors and missed just one of 18 cuts all year. “You say those guys, but if Dustin Johnson wins the next four weeks, there’s only one Player of the Year. It not even close,â€� Ogilvy adds. “To be fair, if anybody wins the next four events, they are in the conversation.â€� Johnson, the No. 4 in the FedExCup and world No. 1, is almost the forgotten man of the season. This is despite winning the Genesis Open, World Golf Championships – Mexico Championship and World Golf Championships – Dell Match Play in consecutive starts earlier in the year. “I’m just fine flying under the radar. That’s all right,â€� Johnson grinned as he begins his Playoffs push. The 2016 U.S. Open champion certainly hasn’t given up hope of being crowned the season-long champ and Player of the Year. “I’m looking for a really good finish to the year. Obviously at the end, I’d like to be the FedExCup champion. That’s a goal of mine right now. We’ve got four big tournaments coming up, and so I need to play well in all four.â€� Canvassing other players, who are the voters for the award, and you get a similar sentiment to Ogilvy. U.S. Open champion Brooks Koepka doesn’t feel like he’s in the running now, but hopes to get some people thinking over the next month. “You win three times in the Playoffs and win the FedExCup — I would certainly say that changes some things,â€� Koepka said. “It is probably narrowed down to two or three guys and I don’t think I’m one of them but then again if you pop off a couple big wins in the Playoffs then the story changes.â€� Bryson DeChambeau, a winner at the John Deere Classic, jokingly asked if he could be Player of the Year if he won all four Playoffs events. It’s not as funny as it seems. If he did, that would be five wins on the season, more than anyone else. “The majors definitely mean a lot but it is who has been consistent over the course of the year and the FedExCup Playoffs are part of that,â€� DeChambeau said. Jason Day, who won five times in 2015 but lost out on the vote to Spieth — also a five-time winner — will be looking at the raw numbers when casting his ballot. “At the end of the day whoever wins the most usually is going to be Player of the Year,â€� he said. “If they have the same amount of wins but one wins the FedExCup, well of course, that’s going to sway the vote.â€� It’s certainly a fun side note to keep an eye on as we get underway at THE NORTHERN TRUST this week.

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