He is the only golfer to ever lift the FedEx Cup without winning any of the playoff events

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While the FedEx Cup is yet to gain the level of prestige that the PGA Tour would like it to have, there have undoubtedly been some iconic moments in the playoffs since their inception back in 2007.

It was fitting that Tiger Woods won the first FedEx Cup back in 2007. Woods is one of just two players to have won the FedEx Cup on more than one occasion, with Rory McIlroy out in front with three titles to his name.

There have been various formats over the last two decades. This year marks the first time since 2018 that the FedEx Cup standings heading into the Tour Championship have not been used to set each player’s starting score at East Lake. Scottie Scheffler began the 2024 event at 10 under par.

Previously, the points on offer during the playoffs would be significantly inflated from the regular season – meaning that a player could, in theory, win the FedEx Cup without winning a playoff event.

As it turns out, there is just one player who has lifted the FedEx Cup in that manner.

The only player to win the FedEx Cup without winning a playoff event that year

There is no question who the star of the first two playoff events was in 2018, with Bryson DeChambeau winning both The Northern Trust and the Dell Technologies Championship. Remarkably, DeChambeau shot 63 in the third round of both events to set himself up for victory.

Keegan Bradley won the BMW Championship to jump from 52nd to sixth in the standings. And following the event at Aronimink, the points were scaled down ahead of the Tour Championship – with DeChambeau continuing to lead the way.

However, DeChambeau finished 19th at East Lake. Instead, the 2018 Tour Championship will be remembered for Tiger Woods‘ iconic victory, with thousands of fans accompanying him up the final fairway in Atlanta.

Woods began the week 20th in the FedEx Cup, which meant that it was actually Justin Rose who lifted the trophy for the playoffs.

Rose won WGC-HSBC Champions in his first event of the season before then lifting the Fort Worth Invitational title in May.

How Justin Rose reacted to winning the 2018 FedEx Cup

Rose missed just one cut all year. He also finished inside the top 20 at all four majors, including ending up tied for second at The Open Championship. Unsurprisingly, he suggested that he benefitted from how reliable he had been throughout the season.

“Obviously I think the reason I’m sort of standing here today as FedExCup is largely to do with the consistency with which I’ve played, a ton of top 10s. Obviously had a couple of wins on the PGA TOUR, as well, this year, and managed to keep that going into the Playoffs with finishing the year with three top 5s. There were a lot of scenarios at play. That’s what the beauty of this format is. I think obviously for me this year it rewarded consistent golf,” he said.

“Sometimes the FedExCup rewards guys who win at the very end. But with obviously maybe Bryson opening the door at the beginning part of the week maybe not having his best week, it kind of opened it up for so many guys this week, and clearly there were so many scenarios at play. For me, I was trying to do my best to win this golf tournament and scoop the double jackpot. But far and away, being next to this trophy is something I’m very, very proud of, and it was — definitely with five, six holes to play, it was pretty precarious. I was in a great position around the turn, and then things just got tricky out there.”

With Rose winning the FedEx St. Jude Championship this year, he will be taking a lot of confidence into East Lake. Perhaps he could join Woods and McIlroy as the only players to win the FedEx Cup more than once.