2014 FedEx Cup: The Key for Top Contenders to Win $10 Million Purse
The premise was a fairly simple one: If one of the top five players on the FedEx Cup points list wins the Tour Championship, he would win the Tour Championship and the FedEx Cup title. Oh, and don't forget the $11.4 million that comes along with winning.
Three of those top five have made the idea of winning a tough task by virtue of how they've played in the first three rounds: Chris Kirk, Bubba Watson and Hunter Mahan. But Billy Horschel (second-ranked) and Rory McIlroy (fourth) are tied for the lead with 18 holes.
What will the top contenders have to do in the final round to secure that big payday?
Check out the following list.
Rory McIlroy
1 of 7
Coming off Friday's sizzling 65, McIlroy did what he needed to do in the opening nine holes of the third round. He shot a two-under par 33 that kept him within shouting distance of leader Billy Horschel.
McIlroy made an eagle on the 15th hole to tie Horschel, and that's how they ended the round. They'll be paired in the final round tomorrow, which should make for an interesting dynamic.
McIlroy is the No. 1 player in the world; Horschel the hottest golfer.
The Northern Irishman is so dominant in so many areas that if can be just a little sharper on the greens, he should be able to handle the tightly wired Horschel, who struggled a bit on the back nine Saturday.
Billy Horschel
2 of 7
Horschel's calling card has been his ball-striking, hitting fairways and greens with great regularity. He's ranked third in the ball-striking category on the PGA Tour this year.
And that's exactly how he played through the front nine, keeping him on top of the leaderboard. Once he made the turn, however, Horschel lost his direction-finder, launching balls left and right off the tee.
Horschel bogeyed the 10th and 13th holes, alllowing McIlroy back in the game, when it looked as though Horschel might run away and hide.
If it's nerves that caused his waywardness Saturday afternoon, he'll need to figure out a way to calm those before Sunday. Of course, that's easier said than done with this kind of money on the line.
Jim Furyk
3 of 7
Lurking just behind the pair of 20-somethings at the top of the Tour Championship scoreboard is a 44-year-old who is playing as well as anyone in the elite field of 29.
Jim Furyk has had a spectacular season, finishing in the top 10 in half of his 20 starts and posting three runner-up finishes. He's a pair of shots out of the lead, and there are some very good reasons why.
He's hit 76.19 percent of the fairways and 72.22 percent of his greens, ranking him first and T2, respectively, in the Tour Championship through three rounds. Furyk is third in putts per green at 1.641.
If there's one area Furyk is lacking, it's distance off the tee. He's averaging 276.0 yards per measured drive, after the third round, which ranks 28th in the tournament. But guess what, Furyk long ago stopped worry about that. He has become very good at strategizing his way around the golf course, and if he does that again Sunday, he'll put plenty of pressure on McIlroy and Horschel.
.jpg?w=256 "Colts Jaguars Football")
Chris Kirk
4 of 7
Chris Kirk vaulted to the top of the FedEx Cup points standings with his win in the second FedEx Cup event, the Deutsche Bank Championship. He arrived at East Lake this week as the top-seeded player and opened with a round of 66. After a second-round 68, he struggled to a one-over par 71 that put him in a tough position in terms of winning the event.
He'll need to come up with some sort of super round Sunday, considering he'll begin the day four shots out of the lead. The numbers tell the tale for Kirk. He hit just 42.86 percent of his fairways and only 55.56 percent of his greens in Round 3.
East Lake Golf Club demands much better ball-striking than that, and hopefully Kirk straightened that part of his game out on the range after his round.
Bubba Watson
5 of 7
Bubba Watson moved up three spots on the leaderboard after posting his second 67 in three rounds. Those sandwiched a second-round 73, and the wacky left-hander finds himself in 11th place with 18 holes to play.
Driving accuracy has never been one of Watson's fortes, and the fact he only hit 57.14 percent on Saturday gives an indication of why he's struggled. But in typical Bubba fashion, he hit 88.89 percent of the greens, tied for second best on the day. So go figure.
As per usual with Watson, his putting has held him back. He's required 1.813 putts per greens in regulation.
He's not going to become a better putter overnight, so he'll need to find a way to get his approach shots closer to the hole to give himself a chance.
Rickie Fowler
6 of 7
Three rounds in the 60s have put Rickie Fowler in position to do something he hasn't done since 2012: win.
If he should do that and the following takes place: Kirk finishes in a three-way tie for third or worse, Horschel finishes third or worse, Watson finishes T2 or worse and McIlroy finishes second or worse, Fowler would earn the biggest (and second) win of his career.
And Fowler is not all that far from doing his part. He's three shots behind McIlroy and Horschel and has done nothing terribly wrong all week. His stats are all certainly passable, and his scores reflect that.
He's just made a few mistakes at the wrong time, or he'd be right there at the top. Just a little tightening of his game and for what seems like the umpteenth time this year, he'll be in contention on Sunday afternoon.
Jason Day
7 of 7
Considering the kind of injury-ravaged season Jason Day has endured, he probably wouldn't consider himself to be terribly lucky.
But after the kind of round he played Saturday in the Tour Championship, you'd think he had a four-leaf clover in his pocket. Day only hit 35.71 percent of the fairways and 55.56 percent of his greens on the ultimate golf-course roller-coaster ride.
Three birdies and three bogeys were on his scorecard, but he made a bunch of pars from nowhere to allow him to finish with a 70 and still have a chance to win the tournament.
Day needs to find some sort of control over his game before he gets to the first tee for the final round.
Stats are courtesy of PGATour.com.
.jpg?w=480 "Colts Jaguars Football")
