The Playoffs(?)

The first event of the PGA Tour playoffs is complete with Justin Rose taking the honours after three extra holes were needed to decide the champion in Memphis. Tommy Fleetwood's inability to close out tournaments is becoming fascinating viewing as well, but the biggest news surrounding the event was the absence of Rory McIlroy, proving once again the FedEx Cup Playoffs aren’t really... playoffs?

The four majors will always be the pinnacle of the game, but the PGA Tour’s efforts to elevate the FedEx Cup into something close has proven quite the elusive task. Instead, once again we have three playoff events to decide who takes home the biggest cheque of the tour's season. Prizemoney distributions are a little different this year, but it’s still a handsome payday at the end. Fields decrease in size from 70 players (last week), to 50 (this week) for the BMW Championship, and finally the top 30 (the week after) for the Tour Championship at East Lake.

Rory McIlroy’s no-show in Memphis was certainly a kick in the guts to the folk in Ponte Vedra, but I actually don’t blame him for missing it since he didn’t have to play. It’s always hot there (110 degrees in the shade) and given his workload of events leading up to the Ryder Cup and beyond (including our own Australian Open) is on the heavy side, it's no wonder he skipped it.

It continues the uncertainty of the Playoffs since their inception. There’s been several iterations and thankfully, the recent attempt of a tiered starting strokes format for the 30-man Tour Championship in has been abolished. Scottie Scheffler beginning at 10 under, with a two-shot lead on second place and a 10-stroke advantage on half the field, would have just been a slow four-day coronation. This year however, everyone starts at level par, with the Fedex Cup awarded to whoever wins the tournament. Unfortunately for Scheffler it means his stellar play all year amounts to nothing as he tees off Thursday in Atlanta, which I don't mind, but he probably does.

Of course, there’s been plenty of ideas thrown around for the best solution going forward, but for me, if the tour truly wants to make it the Playoffs, then it should be just that, a playoff that involves elimination. In just about every other sport teams are gone with a postseason loss. In the NFL you can go 17-0 lose your first playoff game and sayonara. Same in the MLB, Stanley Cup, NBA, FA Cup, and the AFL… although the top 4 do get an extra chance, but it's still great theatre! I also understand we're talking team sports rather than individual but still; to create true drama it would be (sadistically) fun for more cutthroat outcomes after each stage.

Here’s a potential idea to throw in the mix. For the first playoff event, rather than top 70, make it 50 with those finishing No.'s 1 through 6 receiving a bye. Don’t worry they’ll be well compensated for finishing top 6 at the end of the regular season. The top 24 players from this event then move on to a 30-man field (add in the 6) for the second playoff event. From there, the top 8 from this tournament move on to a final where it’s a winner take-all shootout. You could even make this match play but that’s another story. Think of the drama with ties in play for the last spot(s) in these first two events. It would be reality TV at its finest with sudden death playoffs happening amongst the games best. Hey, Scheffler might even have an off week and be in one.

I know the TV networks and sponsors would have something to say about all this, but one can only dream. At least then it would become what it says – the Playoffs! 🤷‍