A $10 million paycheck awaits the winner of this weekend’s PGA TOUR Championship in Atlanta.
The TOUR Championship at East Lake Golf Club, with a $40 million purse, begins Thursday with all players starting at even par and competing over 72 holes of stroke play.
The PGA TOUR ended the six-year format of starting strokes, which would have given FedEx Cup leader Scottie Scheffler a 10-under-par start and a lead over Rory McIlroy and most of the limited field.
“Any of the 30 has a chance to win the FedEx Cup this year, which is obviously a lot different than it’s been in previous years. I think with that, it’s a clean slate for everyone, and it’s a great opportunity for one of the guys that maybe wasn’t a huge part of the season to put their hand up and have a chance to win the big prize at the end of the year,” said this year’s Masters Champion. “It’s also a great opportunity for some of the guys that have had great years to sort of seal the season and end on a really, really positive note.”
A win would cap a season that saw McIlroy become one of only six career grand slam winners. Scheffler, fresh off his BMW Championship comeback victory for his 18th PGA TOUR trophy, seeks more success— beyond his fifth win this season, including a pair of Majors, the PGA Championship and the Open.
‘When I show up at a tournament, I’m here for a purpose and that’s to compete hard, and you compete hard on every shot. I think it’s a lot easier said than done, and I think I’ve been in a good head space the last couple years where I’ve been able to stand up over a ball and focus on what I’m doing and just try and pull it off,” said Scheffler who has achieved 13 consecutive top-eight finishes and is favored by many to win back-to-back TOUR Championships.
Tommy Fleetwood, a sentimental favorite, has come close to his first PGA TOUR win several times this season. The 34-year-old Englishman finished tied for fourth and third place, respectively, in the first two playoff events after a close loss at the Travelers Championship to U.S. Ryder Cup Captain Keegan Bradley.
“I’m not going to feed you lies and say, oh, Memphis, I thought I did everything great, or Travelers I didn’t do anything wrong. Of course, I got things wrong down the stretch, and it didn’t happen for me. But you just learn from those experiences, and I think the overriding, I guess, emotions are a lot of positives. I would rather you be questioning me about not finishing tournaments off than not questioning me at all about anything. So, I’ve obviously shown a lot of really good stuff and put myself in great positions,” Fleetwood said. “Again, best case scenario coming down the stretch at East Lake with a chance to win, whether I get it right or not, whether it happens or not, whether someone plays better or not, I’ll talk about that at the time, but I would love to get there and give myself that chance again.”
U.S. Open winner J.J. Spaun makes his debut here, while Justin Thomas returns for a ninth time, joined by newly named Team USA Ryder Cup members Harris English and Russell Henley. With 2023 Open Champion Brian Harman and likely European Ryder Cup team member Sepp Straka competing alongside English and Henley, a total of four University of Georgia Bulldogs seek some home cooking and southern hospitality on this challenging par-70 course.
“I love this place. I came here, I guess, when I was probably nine years old for the first time, and it was just the culmination of a good year. It’s really hard to make the TOUR Championship,” English said. “I’m really proud of the year I’ve had, and this was goal No. 1 when I was making my goals this year is if I make it to the TOUR Championship, then that means I’ve had a good year. It’s awesome to get back and looking forward to having a chance to lift that trophy at the end of the week.”
Opening Round Tee Times and Thursday Pairings:
11:16 a.m. — Chris Gotterup, Akshay Bhatia
11:27 a.m. — Jacob Bridgeman, Sungjae Im
11:38 a.m. — Nick Taylor, Harry Hall
11:49 a.m. — Hideki Matsuyama, Shane Lowry
Noon — Collin Morikawa, Viktor Hovland
12:16 p.m. — Corey Conners, Patrick Cantlay
12:27 p.m. — Sam Burns, Brian Harman
12:38 p.m. — Andrew Novak, Keegan Bradley
12:49 p.m. — Cameron Young, Ludvig Åberg
1:00 p.m. — Harris English, Justin Thomas
1:16 p.m. — Robert MacIntyre, Maverick McNealy
1:27 p.m. — Russell Henley, Sepp Straka
1:38 p.m. — Tommy Fleetwood, Ben Griffin
1:49 p.m. — J.J. Spaun, Justin Rose
2 p.m. — Scottie Scheffler, Rory McIlroy
On TV:
The Tour Championship will be broadcast on Golf Channel and NBC, with streaming available through the NBC Sports app and Peacock. PGA Tour Live on ESPN+ will provide extended coverage.
Thursday & Friday: Golf Channel and NBC Sports app from 1-6 p.m. ET.
Saturday: Golf Channel and NBC Sports app from 1-2:30 p.m. ET, then NBC, Peacock, and the NBC Sports app from 2:30-7 p.m. ET.
Sunday: Golf Channel and NBC Sports app from 12 noon-1:30 p.m. ET, then NBC, Peacock, and the NBC Sports app from 1:30-6 p.m. ET.
PGA Tour Live on ESPN+ will offer exclusive early coverage and featured group coverage throughout the tournament.
