It is not entirely surprising that the PGA Tour appear to be considering further changes to the Tour Championship format following the 2024 event at East Lake.
The Tour Championship acts as the finale to the FedEx Cup season on the PGA Tour. So it should arguably be up there with the Players Championship as one of the highlights on the calendar. However, that was not the case last year.
Scottie Scheffler started at East Lake on 10 under par, two shots clear of Xander Schauffele. But that lead evaporated after the first hole. Unfortunately, that was almost all of the drama at the top of the leaderboard, barring a brief moment where Collin Morikawa had a glimpse of glory on the front nine on Sunday.
It was a stark reminder of the challenge the PGA Tour faces. There was no way anyone else deserved to win the FedEx Cup in 2024. However, few are likely to tune in to an event which sees Scheffler start with such an advantage that he is almost guaranteed to win.
Johnson Wagner suggests new format for the Tour Championship
It is not a fitting way to end that stage of the season. So something needs to be done. And speaking on Golf Channel, Johnson Wagner suggested the format he would use after experiencing East Lake for the first time in 2024.
“I was at the Tour Championship for the first time this year and it was extremely sleepy. There was no buzz to the event. Not watching it on television, not seeing the crowd out there, there was absolutely no buzz,” he said.
“What I would like to see is that we need to pilfer the college football playoff system right now. 30 guys make the Tour Championship on Wednesday and Thursday, the 26 players who aren’t the top four seeds play for eight spots. Those eight guys then play the first round, the top four seeds get a bye.
“I think anybody to be able to win the Tour Championship and to think about Justin Thomas, who was 28 or 30th going in, what he would have to do to get to a final match would be a look more than what Scottie Scheffler or Xander Schauffele would have had to do.”
The alternative option the Tour Championship has
The alternative is perhaps taking most of the prize money for the Tour Championship and rewarding the season’s best players before the playoffs even start. Therefore, Scottie Scheffler would not feel that his year was going unrecognised, while there would still be some drama to be had at East Lake.
The Tour Championship could then be a more traditional tournament – if there are concerns about a matchplay event – which does away with staggered scores. And while there should still be a hefty prize on offer, it would be much less than what the season’s best player received.
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