Changes are Coming to the TOUR Championship, But When?

The PGA TOUR has tried a few things over the years at the TOUR Championship, but its yet to nail down the perfect format for the FedEx Cup finale annually held at East Lake in Atlanta.

There used to be a tournament winner and FedEx Cup champion, but starting strokes were implemented in 2019 and now there’s one winner. But the whole thing has been a little confusing for the fans at home.

Well, change seems to be coming and it doesn’t sound like we’ll have to wait too long.

Golfweek’s Adam Schupak spoke with Adam Scott, a member of the TOUR’s Policy Board, and got a behind-the-curtain look at what the TOUR Championship could look like going forward.

First and foremost, starting strokes will go out the window. Scott used the word “gimmicky” to describe the current format and said, “I think everybody involved wants that to be the case.”

Sam Burns, a member of the PAC's competitions committee, added, “Right now, it’s a bit confusing for fans to have a tournament where we start even all year and then in our biggest tournament of the year, there are starting strokes. There’s a bit of a disconnect.”

Photo: Getty Images

For months, the idea of having the TOUR Championship be set up like a March Madness bracket and make the final event of the season match play gained some steam on social media, but according to Scott, that’s not going to happen.

“In fairness, we all kicked it around and imagined it and this conversation went on for months—not every day, but three or four meetings about match play and brackets and stuff,” Scott said. “It’s hard to wrap your head around—you play one style all season and then your final event is an entirely different format. I think the players felt like we had match play in pro golf and there’s a reason why it doesn’t go that well. Big names go out and TV dies. It seems compelling early in the week but when Nos. 1 and 2 lose early you’re in for a long weekend and there’s also not a lot of golf.”

Then there’s the issue of timeline. Will we see any changes this August? Or are we going to have to wait a few years and settle for the starting strokes format for another couple seasons. According to Scott, 2025 will be a “bridge year” for the TOUR’s finale.

“One of the big things looking ahead is we want the FedEx Cup and TOUR Championship to be legacy-type events and not too gimmicky,” Scott said. “That’s the premise from which we’re working. It might be impossible to change everything this year because we can’t change points and this, that and the other so hopefully this year will be a bridge to next year. It won’t affect any player this year or leave any player high and dry by changing something late in the piece here and next year with a couple of more changes everyone will see the full picture.”

Photo: Getty Images

But what is the new format actually going to be? According to Burns, a consensus on the format was reached at a PAC meeting last week at the RBC Heritage and before a board vote takes place they need to make sure the TV partners and umbrella sponsors approve of the idea.

“It’s a tournament that, going forward, is going to be what everybody wants to win,” he said. “It’s going to be a better tournament for the players, a better tournament for the sponsors and really everyone involved.”

We'll just have to wait and see what the format will turn into. But I think we can all agree change was needed and the players and TOUR are delivering.