Jordan Spieth reached the PGA Tour postseason for the 14th consecutive year, this time with a most curious achievement. He finished the regular season at No. 54 in the FedEx Cup despite not finishing in the top 10 in any of his 21 tournaments.
How was that possible?
For starters, top 10 really doesn't have as much relevance since 2008 when the Ryder Cup (thanks to U.S. captain Paul Azinger) went away from awarding points only to top-10 finishes.
Spieth had four finishes in the top 12, including the Masters and two signature events. Those four top 12s — the other was a tie for 11th in the Valspar Championship — accounted for 52% of his FedEx Cup points.
He played in all eight signature events this year, but he received only two exemptions — Bay Hill (tie for 11th worth 125 points) and the Travelers Championship (tie for 66th worth seven points). Take out those two sponsor exemptions and Spieth would have finished at No. 64 and still qualified for the FedEx Cup playoffs.
#championship
How was that possible?
For starters, top 10 really doesn't have as much relevance since 2008 when the Ryder Cup (thanks to U.S. captain Paul Azinger) went away from awarding points only to top-10 finishes.
Spieth had four finishes in the top 12, including the Masters and two signature events. Those four top 12s — the other was a tie for 11th in the Valspar Championship — accounted for 52% of his FedEx Cup points.
He played in all eight signature events this year, but he received only two exemptions — Bay Hill (tie for 11th worth 125 points) and the Travelers Championship (tie for 66th worth seven points). Take out those two sponsor exemptions and Spieth would have finished at No. 64 and still qualified for the FedEx Cup playoffs.
#championship
3 months ago
