FedEx Cup Points 2024: Explaining Distribution and Standings

Scottie Scheffler's incredible PGA Tour season has set himself up with a massive lead in the FedEx Cup standings as the FedEx Cup Playoffs begin this week.

Scheffler's lead in the standings over Xander Schauffele is close to 2,000 points. No other golfer is within 3,000 points of him.

The top-ranked men's golfer in the world does not have the trophy locked up yet, but he is the clear favorite to finish The Tour Championship in three weeks with another piece of hardware.

The FedEx Cup Playoffs take place over the course of three weeks, starting with the FedEx St. Jude Championship. The top 70 golfers start there and then the field is progressively cut to 50 and then to 30 for the Tour Championship.

FedEx Cup Standings

1. Scottie Scheffler - 5,993 points

2. Xander Schauffele - 4,057

3. Rory McIlroy - 2,545

4. Collin Morikawa - 2,456

5. Wyndham Clark - 2,154

6. Ludvig Aberg - 2,092

7. Sahith Theegala - 2,037

8. Hideki Matsuyama - 1,899

9. Sungjae Im - 1,896

10. Shane Lowry - 1,867

Full standings can be found on PGATour.com.

Scheffler's lead in the FedEx Cup standings is not insurmountable because of the points awarded to winners of the playoff events.

The winner of each playoff event receives 2,000 points, which is quadruple the number given out for regular-season events.

The second-place finisher gets 1,200 points, third place earns 760 points, fourth place receives 540 and fifth place takes 440 points. The full points distribution for every place can be found on PGATour.com.

The FedEx Cup field starts at 70 at the FedEx St. Jude Championship. The top 50 players in the standings will head to the BMW Championship and then the top 30 make the Tour Championship.

Placing prior to the Tour Championship matters because the top golfer starts that event at 10-under.

The FedEx Cup standings leader will have a built-in two-stroke lead on his closest competition to begin the Tour Championship. The leader will have a 10-stroke advantage on the golfers placed 26th-30th.

The cut line typically receives more focus than the top five at the first two events because golfers are playing to keep their seasons alive.

The high number of points available for a high finish at the FedEx St. Jude Championship and BMW Championship can significantly alter the cut line.

A win would do wonders for any golfer placed under the cut line this week. The points difference is only 300 between 50th and 70th.

It will be difficult for anyone to catch Scheffler even if he plays average golf for the next three weeks, but the prize money increases with every position in the standings so every playoff stroke will matter.