Rory McIlroy was in jeopardy of not making it to the Tour Championship.
Now, he is in position to win the FedEx Cup.
Not a bad week.
McIlroy came back from six shots off the lead to win the Deutsche Bank Championship with a closing round 66 Monday at TPC Boston. The win catapulted McIlroy from No. 38 to No. 4 in the FedEx Cup point standings. It was the second biggest move up the chart for the week.
McIlroy began the FedEx Cup playoffs at No. 36, a concern to those at the Tour Championship who did not want to see the world’s No. 5 ranked player missed the playoff finale at Atlanta’s East Lake Golf Club later this month. McIlroy fell to No. 38 last week after The Barclays, the opening event of the PGA Tour playoffs.
“I still need to keep going with it,” McIlroy said after his first win on the PGA Tour in 16 months. “It’s definitely not the finished article, but it’s a big step in the right direction, but just excitement. Excited with how my game is and what I’ve found this week, and hopefully I can keep it going for the next couple of tournaments.”
McIlroy’s third FedEx Cup playoffs win ties him for most with Tiger Woods.
The FedEx Cup playoffs continue this week with the BMW Championship at Crooked Stick Golf Course in Carmel, Indiana beginning Thursday. The field of 70, trimmed from 100 after the Deutsche Bank Championship, will be cut to the top 30. Those players will advance to the Tour Championship Sept. 22-25.
The top five players in the point standings going into the Tour Championship control their own fate with a victory clinching the FedEx Cup and its $10 million prize.
Here is a look inside the FedEx Cup playoffs after the second of four events:
Biggest move up
Paul Casey made the biggest move of the week as he advanced 49 spots after his second-place finish at the Deutsche Bank. He moved to No. 10 from No. 59 in the point standings.
Biggest move down
Martin Laird, Colt Knost and Ben Martin all fell 14 places after missing the cut. The drop was especially painful for Laird and Knost, who each were eliminated after they fell out of the top 70. Laird fell from No. 63 to No. 77 and Knost fell from No. 65 to No. 79.
Charl Schwartzel (No. 43) and Aaron Baddeley (No. 67) both fell 11 places.
Still alive
Six players advanced to the BMW Championship by moving into the top 70. Billy Hurley III (No. 51), David Hearn (No. 59), Hudson Swafford (No. 61), Augusta State’s Vaughn Taylor (No. 64), Georgia’s Chris Kirk (No. 66) and Marc Leishman (No. 70) are still alive. Leishman moved up the one spot he needed to advance despite a near costly double-bogey on his 17th hole Monday.
“A top-5 next week you can get in the Tour Championship,” Taylor said. “I never played in the Tour Championship so it’s definitely a goal of mine and I would love the opportunity next week.”
Falling out
Six players fell out of the top 70 and had their playoff runs ended. In addition to Laird and Knost, Ricky Barnes fell three spots to No. 71, Jerry Kelly fell 11 spots to No. 72, Johnson Wagner fell nine spots to No. 78 and Chez Reavie fell 14 spots to No. 81.
Notables eliminated
Chad Campbell, Steve Stricker, Jim Furyk and Webb Simpson were all ousted from the playoffs.
The top five
The top five in the FedEx Cup standings changed just a little after the week. Patrick Reed, winner of The Barclays, keeps hold of his top spot with 3,975 points. He is followed by Jason Day (3,409), Dustin Johnson (3,189), McIlroy (3,115) and Adam Scott (3,063). Scott fell one place behind McIlroy and Jordan Spieth (2,451) was bumped out of the top group.
Bubble watch
Matt Kuchar is currently No. 28 in the point standings. The Georgia Tech product is right on the edge for a return trip to East Lake. Currently on the inside of the cutline are Jhonattan Vegas (No. 29) and Brooks Koepka (No. 30). Just outside and looking in are Daniel Berger (No. 31) and Fabian Gomez (No. 32).
About the Author
