"Something To Talk About"

That was the PGATour.com headline linking the press release announcing the FedEx Cup. Everyone's excited.

"It's an exciting time for golf," Tiger Woods said. "It's certainly going to be more exciting for everyone, not just us as competitors who will be bucking heads against the best more often, but also for the fans."

I'm sure he's retooling his '07 schedule as we speak.

"I think for the spectator watching on television or even coming to golf events, there is going to be a new buzz," Ernie Els said.

I guess Phil wasn't available for comment.

The FedExCup will offer $35 million in total bonus money, one of the highest totals in sports. Following the winner's share of $10 million, second through fifth place will receive $3 million, $2 million, $1.5 million and $1 million, respectively.

You would hope those dollar figures will get their attention. And for the money quote...pun intended:

"The FedExCup is setting a new standard for excellence for the PGA TOUR and ushers in a new era for professional golf," said T. Michael Glenn, executive vice president of Market Development and Corporate Communications at FedEx. "With our shared attributes of reliability, excellence and leadership, the FedExCup is the perfect addition to the FedEx sports marketing portfolio." 

The scary thing is, he was proud of that quote. Probably worked on it for weeks.

Check out the points breakdowns. No big shockers except that puny amounts available for events opposite the WGC's or  majors. 

The Western No Longer

I actually got to read this Ed Sherman column on the death of the Western as it appeared in the Chicago Tribune. And I wonder how many people at the Tour realize what the "Western Open" name has meant to pro golf? Doesn't matter now.

Officials, using well-rehearsed lines, tried to explain why Chicago golf fans shouldn't feel jilted.

"We really don't look at it as abandoning Chicago," the PGA Tour's Tom Wade said. "We look at it as really upgrading and bringing a top-level, world-class event to Chicago."

How much of an upgrade do we need?

Sure, the September field will be deeper, but Tiger Woods and Vijay Singh are Western Open regulars and Phil Mickelson is an occasional visitor.

Are the crowds, which average in the high 40,000 range on the weekend, going to be substantially bigger because Retief Goosen is in the field? I'd rather see Woods every year and take a pass on Goosen.

The fact is, a strong local sponsor never would have allowed the tournament to be moved.

It remains a mystery why, after Motorola bowed out in 1999, a Chicago-area company never stepped up to support the event.

Now BMW, for a substantial $12 million to $14 million per year investment in sponsor costs, has renamed the tournament. It's hard to see the Western Open name go, but at least Evans Scholars will see a major boost in funding. That's one upgrade we can accept.

It wasn't BMW's decision to rotate tournament locations. That ruling came from the PGA Tour.

MacDuff's Post Booz Allen Fed Ex Cup Standings

Well the big news hits today...I know you can't wait to hear how the Fed Ex Cup works.

In the mean time, here's MacDuff's latest entry. I wonder if we'll get the Tour's point list for this year to show us how exciting it's going to be (and so we can see how they treat majors and WGC's).

^{1    Mickelson    22459        14
2    Singh    20134.37        15
3    Furyk    19587.5        13
4    Gf. Ogilvy    18487.5        12
5    Toms    16196.87        11
6    Weir    16021.87        13
7    Van Pelt    15940        17
8    Glover    15879.16        12
9    Pettersson    15758.33        14
10    C.Campbell    15587.5        13
11    Pernice    15525        12
12    Donald    15189.37        10
13    B. Quigley    15075        12
14    Appleby    14987.5        12
15    Oberholser    14637.5        13
16    Pampling    14622.5        13
17    A.Scott    14575        10
18    Olazabal    13862.5        10
19    Sabbatini    13754.16        12
20    Cink    13696.33        12
21    Funk    13637.5        14
22    Gay    13400        13
23    Immelman    13287.5        10
24    Z.Johnson    13075        11
25    Goosen    12937.5        10
26    Bohn    12913.33        13
27    Mayfair    12654.16        13
28    Senden    12475        11
29    Harrington    12450        10
30    Purdy    12375        12
31    T.Clark    12285        12
32    Vn Taylor    12137.5        10
33    Verplank    12037.5        10
34    Jerry Kelly    11687.5        10
35    Imada    11667.5        13
36    Crane    11585        12
37    Choi    11575        11
38    Love III    11412.5        11
39    Herron    11222.5        11
40    Els    11140        11
41    D.Wilson    11112.5        12
42    Lehman    11075        11
43    Warren    11050        11
44    Hoffman    10987.5        12
45    Ames    10862.5        8
46    Parnevik    10767.5        12
47    Sluman    10762.5        14
48    T.Woods    10659.37        6
49    Chopra    10567        12
50    Allenby    10350        9
51    Villegas    10337.5        11
52    RS Johnson    10305        10
53    Bryant    10257        10
54    Wetterich    10175        8
55    Poulter    10062.5        10
56    Watney    10025        11
57    Stricker    9725        7
58    Leonard    9683.33        11
59    D. Howell    9587.5        8
60    Palmer    9466.66        11
61    J.Ogilvie    9345        10
62    Howell III    9187.5        14
63    Flesch    9170        14
64    JJ Henry    9162.5        9
65    Garcia    9112.5        8
66    Waldorf    9087.5        11
67    F.Jacobson    9062.5        8
68    Rose    9041.66        11
69    JB Holmes    8945.83        9
70    Jobe    8905        10
71    Estes    8837.5        9
72    S. Maruyama    8825        10
73    Maggert    8812.5        9
74    Bertsch    8750        11
75    Hart    8680        9
76    G. Owen    8662.5        9
77    Curtis    8625        11
78    Barlow    8612.5        11
79    Azinger    8562.5        11
80    Rollins    8537.5        9
81    Branshaw    8525        9
82    Couples    8437.5        10
83    Austin    8425        13
84    N.Green    8415        11
85    Baird    8242.5        8
86    Beem    8168.75        10
87    Micheel    8162.5        9
88    Franco    8112.5        9
89    Sutherland    8050        10
90    DiMarco    7959.37        9
91    Andrade    7957.5        9
92    Sean O'Hair    7912        10
93    Slocum    7837.5        10
94    Kenny Perry    7812.5        9
95    Lonard    7787.5        10
96    J.Smith    7775        9
97    Sindelar    7762.5        11
98    Lowery    7700        10
99    Gronberg    7550        8
100    Gove    7437.5        7
101    Calcavecchia    7367.5        13
102    Faxon    7125        10
103    Langer    7079.16        9
104    Olin Browne    7075        12
105    Pavin    7062.5        7
106    Bjornstad    7005        9
107    Cook    6962.5        7
108    Baddeley    6962.5        8
109    JL Lewis    6937.5        11
110    Br.Davis    6867.5        9
111    J.Byrd    6862.5        5
112    Bub Watson    6850        7
113    Goggin    6675.25        6
114    Armour III    6425        8
115    Fischer    6425        9
116    M.Wilson    6415        7
117    Kaye    6325        9
118    Triplett    6275        7
119    Pat Perez    6262.5        7
120    Mahan    6262.5        11
121    Barron    6218.75        8
122    O'Hern    6200        4
123    Cabrera    6162.5        6
124    Lickliter II    6150        8
125    Geiberger    6068.75        9
126    B. Haas    6050        8
127    Allen    6050        9
128    Durant    5987.5        11
129    Overton    5837.5        9
130    Leaney    5712.5        7
131    Atwal    5650        6
132    Gore    5525        6
133    David Duval    5525        7
134    Ws Short Jr    5462.5        11
135    D.Clarke    5275        5
136    Westwood    5187.5        5
137    Matteson    5112.5        8
138    S.Jones    4980        9
139    Petrovic    4925        7
140    K. Cox    4887.5        5}

Media Alert!

Well I just can't sit on this any longer. Thanks to reader, well, I better not say because this is such big news, but you know who you are.

It's a moment we've all been waiting for. History in the making, I tell you. Live from New York City (!?)...

FedExCup Announcement
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 28
1:15 pm ET

Teleconference Dial-In Numbers
United States: (800) xxx-xxxx
International: (612) xxx-xxxx

Oh yeah, like they'll get a lot of those international calls.

Please join PGA TOUR Commissioner Tim Finchem, 8-time TOUR winner Stuart Appleby, FedEx Services CEO Mike Glenn and other special guests for a press conference outlining new details on the FedExCup Season and PGA TOUR Playoffs, which debut in 2007.

Should be a special day. Why they are doing it in New York is beyond me. Must be one of those Madison Avenue branding things.

Boswell On Tour; Kite On TPC's

Thomas Boswell on the PGA Tour...

Golf is the game of sportsmanship and proper manners, the sport that exemplifies respect for others. We even use it to teach values to kids, to instill the idea that conscience defines character.

So, this is a week for golf -- at least the crass, ungrateful traveling-circus PGA Tour version -- to hang its head in shame.

t's no accident that all of the world's four major championships are run by organizations other than the PGA Tour. The tour keeps pumping its own Players Championship to join the elite. But it'll never happen -- not as long as the tour humiliates itself, shows its true colors, and drives itself down the scale of social respectability with disasters such as the one it is perpetrating in Washington this week.

Even a golf tournament deserves a decent burial. The funeral for the summer pro golf stop in Washington is being held at TPC Avenel this week. The PGA Tour didn't even have the decency to close the casket.

And this from Tom Kite on TPC's...

"The tour has made the mistake of opening [its] TPCs too early many times," Kite said. "We played Memphis too early. We played this one too early. That's probably nothing more than mismanagement -- just not taking the time to pay attention to the golf courses. . . . They've kind of jumped in, tried to make money.

"Unfortunately, that leaves us with some bad names and reputations for the TPCs."

Washington Politics

Thanks to Jim A. for the heads up on this Leonard Shapiro story on the Washington event, and the contradicting views of those involved in the event's demise move to the fall.

"Booz Allen made it clear from Day One about certain date limitations after the U.S. Open," Finchem said. "That more or less dovetailed with our attitude that continuing to move the tournament back and forth [before and after the Open] was not consistent with being able to stage the kind of event and to have continuity of sponsorship. The main thing, the main point of Booz Allen, is they did not want to play anything after the Open. That was troublesome for us."

Booz Allen chairman Ralph Shrader disputed Finchem's version of events. He said the last formal communication he received from the tour on dates for the tournament came in February 2005. He said the tour at that point offered a four-year sponsorship cycle that would have included three dates before the Open and a fourth after the Open, with the possibility of staging all four before the Open.

"That was the last formal communication we had with the tour," Shrader said. "At that point they also said they would finalize the plans to renovate the course at Avenel and they'd get back to us. They got back to me two hours before they said [in a news conference in January] they had moved the event to the fall.

"We did not have the opportunity to say no. I won't allow it to be perceived that Booz Allen cost the Washington area the event. We worked too hard and spent too much money [about $30 million over three years] to make it a first-class event. I'm not going to accept any blame for what happened. It's all in the tour's court."

Finchem On Washington

Boy, after reading the recent stuff from Carolyn Bivens, Tim Finchem's press conferences are so boring!

Still, it was a combative teleconference with the Washington scribblers on demise of the Booze Allen and the reconstruction of TPC Avenel:

With respect to how we got to the scheduling decision, as I indicated at the end of our television negotiations, when we released our schedule earlier in the year, we felt like it was important to give as many weeks to possible consistent dates. We could have gone to a continuation of a situation where some years we play earlier in the summer in Washington, like we played last year, and other years we could play later in the summer. The feeling was that we would continue to have an inconsistent execution of our product, probably the fallout of that being a lack of continuity with the title sponsor, which has certainly been the case there since Kemper left. We just didn't want to go down that road. We wanted to try something we felt like had a better chance of continual year in, year out success.

I've always said, that if you can't have consistent product execution, it's just not worth it. 

Q. Big picture question. How did the tournament in DC, one of the biggest markets in the nation, nation's capital, wind up on the outside looking in as far as the good dates go, and some tournaments in smaller markets, like the 84 Lumber in Greensboro, not nearly as well supported by the public as this one, how did they end up with the good dates and this tournament was on the out?

COMMISSIONER FINCHEM: First of all, it's kind of hard to answer that question in the way you phrase it because you're assuming certain things about a "good date." We have dates on our schedule from the first week in January right through now the fall series to November. What's a good date for one market is not a good date for another market. What's a good date for a particular sponsor is not a good date for another sponsor in the same market. There are a lot of variables in terms of what goes into a date.

I think that the reaction to the date change in Washington has really been focused on one thing, and that is being in the FedEx Cup season, early summer, is preferable to anything else. I certainly wouldn't argue the point that being in the FedEx Cup season is an advantage. But I think the reaction perhaps has been a little bit overdone in terms of the negativity of the fall, as I said earlier.

The bottom line is that we were not comfortable, and frankly neither was Booz Allen, in continuing a date structure that has historically led to an event that would not be the kind of event on a number of levels that we'd like to see over the long term in the nation's capital. We wanted an opportunity to do something better. We thought consistent dates was part of that, but there are other factors.

This is a little weird....

TODD BUDNICK: Thank you very much for your time today, Commissioner.

COMMISSIONER FINCHEM: Thank you, Todd.

Ladies and Gentlemen, if you need additional information, we're available to you. I know a couple of you have called in the last couple of weeks. I've deferred those conversations until I had an opportunity to make comments generally today. In the aftermath of this week's tournament, I'd be happy to make myself available or other people on our team. We'll have more to say about Avenel here very shortly after the public hearing.

In the meantime, I would encourage you to cover this week's tournament. We have a lot of great players there, good golf course, we're looking forward to a good competition. Thank you.

I would encourage you to cover this week's tournament? What else would they cover? 

MacDuff's Post Winged Foot Fed Ex Cup Standings

Remember, he's not giving extra points for the majors. Tiger's 43rd. Good thing the deal doesn't start until next year.

_{1    Mickelson    22459        14
2    Singh    20134.37        15
3    Furyk    19587.5        13
4    Gf. Ogilvy    18487.5        12
5    Toms    16196.87        11
6    Weir    16021.87        13
7    Van Pelt    15940        17
8    Glover    15879.16        12
9    Pettersson    15758.33        14
10    C.Campbell    15587.5        13
11    Pernice    15525        12
12    Donald    15189.37        10
13    Appleby    14987.5        12
14    Oberholser    14637.5        13
15    Pampling    14622.5        13
16    A.Scott    14575        10
17    Olazabal    13862.5        10
18    Sabbatini    13754.16        12
19    Cink    13696.33        12
20    B. Quigley    13375        11
21    Immelman    13287.5        10
22    Z.Johnson    13075        11
23    Goosen    12937.5        10
24    Bohn    12913.33        13
25    Mayfair    12654.16        13
26    Funk    12600        13
27    Gay    12525        12
28    Purdy    12375        12
29    T.Clark    12285        12
30    Vn Taylor    12137.5        10
31    Verplank    12037.5        10
32    Senden    11600        10
33    Imada    11505        12
34    Love III    11412.5        11
35    Herron    11222.5        11
36    Els    11140        11
37    D.Wilson    11112.5        12
38    Lehman    11075        11
39    Ames    10862.5        8
40    Hoffman    10862.5        11
41    Parnevik    10767.5        12
42    Sluman    10762.5        14
43    T.Woods    10659.37        6
44    Harrington    10575        9
45    Choi    10537.5        10
46    Villegas    10337.5        11
47    Jerry Kelly    10325        9
48    RS Johnson    10305        10
49    Poulter    10062.5        10
50    Watney    10025        11
51    Warren    10012.5        10
52    Crane    9885        11
53    Wetterich    9775        7
54    Leonard    9683.33        11
55    D. Howell    9587.5        8
56    Palmer    9466.66        11
57    J.Ogilvie    9345        10
58    Howell III    9187.5        14
59    JJ Henry    9162.5        9
60    Garcia    9112.5        8
61    Waldorf    9087.5        11
62    Bryant    9075        9
63    F.Jacobson    9062.5        8
64    Rose    9041.66        11
65    Chopra    8992        11
66    Jobe    8905        10
67    Estes    8837.5        9
68    Maggert    8812.5        9
69    Allenby    8775        8
70    Bertsch    8750        11
71    Hart    8680        9
72    G. Owen    8662.5        9
73    Rollins    8537.5        9
74    Couples    8437.5        10
75    Austin    8425        13
76    N.Green    8415        11
77    Baird    8242.5        8
78    Micheel    8162.5        9
79    Azinger    8162.5        10
80    Franco    8112.5        9
81    Barlow    8062.5        10
82    DiMarco    7959.37        9
83    Sean O'Hair    7912        10
84    JB Holmes    7908.33        8
85    Stricker    7850        6
86    Flesch    7807.5        13
87    Lonard    7787.5        10
88    Lowery    7700        10
89    S. Maruyama    7462.5        9
90    Calcavecchia    7367.5        13
91    Branshaw    7325        8
92    Beem    7293.75        9
93    J.Smith    7225        8
94    Faxon    7125        10
95    Langer    7079.16        9
96    Olin Browne    7075        12
97    Pavin    7062.5        7
98    Sindelar    7037.5        10
99    Sutherland    7012.5        9
100    Bjornstad    7005        9
101    Cook    6962.5        7
102    Baddeley    6962.5        8
103    JL Lewis    6937.5        11
104    Bub Watson    6850        7
105    Goggin    6675.25        6
106    Slocum    6475        9
107    Kenny Perry    6450        8
108    Fischer    6425        9
109    M.Wilson    6415        7
110    Gronberg    6350        7
111    Triplett    6275        7
112    Pat Perez    6262.5        7
113    Barron    6218.75        8
114    Cabrera    6162.5        6
115    Curtis    6125        10
116    Andrade    6082.5        8
117    B. Haas    6050        8
118    Geiberger    6037.5        8
119    Br.Davis    5992.5        8
120    Durant    5987.5        11
121    Gove    5737.5        6
122    Leaney    5712.5        7
123    Atwal    5650        6
124    Gore    5525        6
125    David Duval    5525        7
126    J.Byrd    5500        4
127    Ws Short Jr    5462.5        11
128    Armour III    5387.5        7
129    D.Clarke    5275        5
130    Mahan    5225        10
131    Westwood    5187.5        5
132    Matteson    5037.5        7
133    S.Jones    4980        9
T134    Kaye    4962.5        8
T134    Overton    4962.5        8
136    Lickliter II    4950        7
137    Petrovic    4925        7
138    Gamez    4800        8
139    Jimenez    4712.5        4
140    Kent Jones    4637.5        7}

MacDuff's Post Westchester FedEx Cup Points

Well the FedEx Cups Points race is really, well, it's doing something even though we aren't sure what. As always, thanks to reader MacDuff for his compilation, which does not give extra points for majors or WGC's. 

^{_{1    Mickelson    20559        13
2    Singh    18509.37        14
3    Furyk    17687.5        12
4    Toms    16196.87        11
5    Gf. Ogilvy    15987.5        11
6    Glover    15879.16        12
7    Pettersson    15758.33        14
8    C.Campbell    15587.5        13
9    Van Pelt    15252.5        16
10    Appleby    14987.5        12
11    Weir    14396.87        12
12    Pernice    14325        11
13    Sabbatini    13754.16        12
14    Donald    13739.37        9
15    Pampling    13697.5        12
16    A.Scott    13375        9
17    B. Quigley    13375        11
18    Oberholser    13312.5        12
19    Z.Johnson    13075        11
20    Goosen    12937.5        10
21    Bohn    12913.33        13
22    Cink    12871.33        11
23    Olazabal    12662.5        9
24    Mayfair    12654.16        13
25    Gay    12525        12
26    T.Clark    12285        12
27    Vn Taylor    12137.5        10
28    Immelman    12087.5        9
29    Verplank    12037.5        10
30    Funk    11912.5        12
31    Senden    11600        10
32    Love III    11412.5        11
33    Purdy    11312.5        11
34    D.Wilson    11112.5        12
35    Lehman    11075        11
36    Herron    11022.5        10
37    Ames    10862.5        8
38    Parnevik    10767.5        12
39    T.Woods    10659.37        6
40    Choi    10537.5        10
41    Hoffman    10375        10
42    Jerry Kelly    10325        9
43    RS Johnson    10305        10
44    Els    10077.5        10
45    Villegas    10062.5        10
46    Imada    10055        11
47    Watney    10025        11
48    Warren    10012.5        10
49    Wetterich    9775        7
50    Leonard    9683.33        11
51    Crane    9660        10
52    Palmer    9466.66        11
53    J.Ogilvie    9345        10
54    JJ Henry    9162.5        9
55    Sluman    9137.5        13
56    Garcia    9112.5        8
57    Waldorf    9087.5        11
58    F.Jacobson    9062.5        8
59    Rose    9041.66        11
60    Chopra    8992        11
61    Jobe    8905        10
62    Estes    8837.5        9
63    Maggert    8812.5        9
64    Harrington    8775        8
65    Bertsch    8750        11
66    Hart    8680        9
67    G. Owen    8662.5        9
68    Poulter    8612.5        9
69    Rollins    8537.5        9
70    N.Green    8415        11
71    Howell III    8362.5        13
72    D. Howell    8262.5        7
73    Baird    8242.5        8
74    Micheel    8162.5        9
75    Azinger    8162.5        10
76    Bryant    8150        8
77    Franco    8112.5        9
78    DiMarco    7959.37        9
79    Couples    7950        9
80    Flesch    7807.5        13
81    Lonard    7787.5        10
82    Lowery    7700        10
83    Austin    7500        12
84    S. Maruyama    7462.5        9
85    Allenby    7450        7
86    JB Holmes    7420.83        7
87    Calcavecchia    7367.5        13
88    Branshaw    7325        8
89    Beem    7293.75        9
90    J.Smith    7225        8
91    Faxon    7125        10
92    Langer    7079.16        9
93    Olin Browne    7075        12
94    Pavin    7062.5        7
95    Sindelar    7037.5        10
96    Sutherland    7012.5        9
97    Bjornstad    7005        9
98    Barlow    7000        9
99    Baddeley    6962.5        8
100    JL Lewis    6937.5        11
101    Bub Watson    6850        7
102    Sean O'Hair    6849.5        9
103    Goggin    6675.25        6
104    Slocum    6475        9
105    Fischer    6425        9
106    M.Wilson    6415        7
107    Gronberg    6350        7
108    Cook    6275        6
109    Triplett    6275        7
110    Pat Perez    6262.5        7
111    Stricker    6225        5
112    Barron    6218.75        8
113    Kenny Perry    6125        7
114    Andrade    6082.5        8
115    B. Haas    6050        8
116    Geiberger    6037.5        8
117    Br.Davis    5992.5        8
118    Durant    5987.5        11
119    Curtis    5775        9
120    Gove    5737.5        6
121    Leaney    5712.5        7
122    Atwal    5650        6
123    Gore    5525        6
124    J.Byrd    5500        4
125    Ws Short Jr    5462.5        11
126    Mahan    5225        10
127    Westwood    5187.5        5
128    Cabrera    5100        5
129    Matteson    5037.5        7
T130    Kaye    4962.5        8
T130    Overton    4962.5        8
132    Lickliter II    4950        7
133    Petrovic    4925        7
134    D.Clarke    4900        4
135    Gamez    4800        8
136    Armour III    4700        6
137    Allen    4562.5        8
138    Dickerson    4450        8
139    Tway    4425        8
140    Nick Price    4300        4}}

MacDuff's Post Memorial FedEx Cup Standings

As always, a big thank you to reader MacDuff for compiling this mythical look at a 2006 PGA Tour FedEx Cup race. It continues to reward those who play well and play often...but we know that's not necessarily what the TV folks are looking for!

^{1    Mickelson    19309.37        12
2    Furyk    17687.5        12
3    Singh    16009.37        13
4    Glover    15854.16        11
5    Pettersson    15758.33        14
6    C.Campbell    15587.5        13
7    Toms    14821.87        10
8    Gf. Ogilvy    14737.5        10
9    Van Pelt    14002.5        15
10    Sabbatini    13754.16        12
11    Appleby    13737.5        11
12    Weir    13421.87        11
13    Z.Johnson    13075        11
14    Pampling    12885        11
15    Cink    12871.33        11
16    Oberholser    12775        11
17    Pernice    12600        9
18    Mayfair    12566.66        12
19    Gay    12525        12
20    Olazabal    12375        8
21    Vn Taylor    12137.5        10
22    T.Clark    12110        11
23    Verplank    12037.5        10
24    Donald    12014.37        8
25    Goosen    11962.5        9
26    B. Quigley    11500        10
27    A.Scott    11425        8
28    Love III    11412.5        11
29    Bohn    11363.33        12
30    Purdy    11312.5        11
31    Funk    11100        11
32    Herron    11022.5        10
33    D.Wilson    10937.5        11
34    Ames    10862.5        8
35    Parnevik    10767.5        12
36    T.Woods    10659.37        6
37    Immelman    10650        8
38    Choi    10537.5        10
39    Hoffman    10375        10
40    Senden    10350        9
41    Jerry Kelly    10325        9
42    RS Johnson    10305        10
43    Els    10077.5        10
44    Villegas    10062.5        10
45    Warren    10012.5        10
46    Lehman    9825        10
47    Wetterich    9775        7
48    JJ Henry    9162.5        9
49    Garcia    9112.5        8
50    Waldorf    9087.5        11
51    Palmer    9066.66        10
52    Rose    9041.66        11
53    Chopra    8992        11
54    J.Ogilvie    8945        9
55    Watney    8912.5        10
56    Estes    8837.5        9
57    Jobe    8817.5        9
58    Bertsch    8725        10
59    Leonard    8708.33        10
60    Crane    8685        9
61    Hart    8680        9
62    Imada    8680        10
63    G. Owen    8662.5        9
64    Baird    8242.5        8
65    Micheel    8162.5        9
66    Bryant    8150        8
67    Howell III    8137.5        12
68    Franco    8087.5        8
69    Harrington    7962.5        7
70    Couples    7925        8
71    N.Green    7877.5        10
72    Rollins    7862.5        8
73    Flesch    7782.5        12
74    Lowery    7700        10
75    Azinger    7625        9
76    Austin    7500        12
77    S. Maruyama    7462.5        9
78    Allenby    7450        7
79    Maggert    7437.5        8
80    JB Holmes    7420.83        7
81    Sluman    7412.5        12
82    Calc    7342.5        12
83    F.Jacobson    7337.5        7
84    Branshaw    7325        8
85    Beem    7293.75        9
86    DiMarco    7284.37        8
87    J.Smith    7225        8
88    Olin Browne    7075        12
89    Poulter    7062.5        8
90    Bjornstad    7005        9
91    Lonard    6975        9
92    Baddeley    6962.5        8
93    JL Lewis    6937.5        11
94    Bub Watson    6850        7
95    D. Howell    6825        6
96    Barlow    6712.5        8
97    Langer    6541.66        8
98    Slocum    6475        9
99    Fischer    6425        9
100    M.Wilson    6415        7
101    Gronberg    6350        7
102    Triplett    6275        7
103    Pat Perez    6262.5        7
104    Stricker    6225        5
105    Barron    6193.75        7
106    Pavin    6087.5        6
107    B. Haas    6050        8
108    Geiberger    6037.5        8
109    Sean O'Hair    6037        8
110    Br.Davis    5992.5        8
111    Durant    5962.5        10
112    Sindelar    5925        9
113    Sutherland    5900        8
114    Cook    5875        5
115    Faxon    5875        9
116    Curtis    5775        9
117    Gove    5737.5        6
118    Leaney    5712.5        7
119    Atwal    5625        5
120    Kenny Perry    5587.5        6
121    Gore    5525        6
122    J.Byrd    5500        4
123    Ws Short Jr    5437.5        10
124    Westwood    5187.5        5
125    Goggin    5125.25        5
126    Cabrera    5100        5
127    Matteson    5037.5        7
128    Petrovic    4925        7
129    D.Clarke    4900        4
130    Gamez    4800        8
131    Armour III    4700        6
132    Mahan    4550        9
133    Dickerson    4450        8
134    Nick Price    4300        4
135    Kaye    4287.5        7
136    Lickliter II    4275        6
137    Frazar    4237.5        7
138    Veazey    4225        6
139    Andrade    4207.5        7
140    David Duval    4200        6}

Huggan on Euro Scheduling, Wentworth's Redesign

John Huggan's Sunday in The Scotsman ;) column looks at the European Tour's scheduling dilemma, the Fed Ex Cup, and Ernie Els' redesign work at Wentworth. Naturally, he's skeptical.

The biggest thing on O'Grady's mind is easy to identify. Next year, America's PGA Tour will embark on a radical new schedule climaxing with something called the Fed-Ex Cup, a 'play-off' series modelled on the mystifyingly-successful NASCAR, in which cars drive round and round in endless circles to no obvious purpose.

Regarding the European Tour...

With more and more of Europe's leading players spending more and more time in the US, the traditional European Tour schedule will have to adjust. For instance, the British Masters, which was held at the Belfry three weeks ago, will move to September to avoid a clash with the Players Championship, which will switch from March to May.

"It will become readily apparent when we refine our 2007 dates where we're trying to focus ourselves. We spent a lot of effort with various players to find the right period to put tournaments in. We are examining where we are with the PGA Tour, because they bring a welter of marketing muscle and money to any situation."

Allow me to decode. Without actually saying so - the man is a diplomat - O'Grady is alluding to the fact that the PGA Tour in the shape of commissioner Tim Finchem is a classic bully, who couldn't care less about the effect of his actions on anyone other than his members. For the good of the game is not a phrase that the former Washington lobbyist is too familiar with.

On the upside, many doubts remain about the long-term success of the Fed-Ex series thingy. The suspicion here is that, as with so many things in golf, it will come down to the level of interest that one Tiger Woods can muster. If the world No.1 decides that he has better things to do, like winning the major championships that history will actually remember, the whole thing will quickly fold.

Which would not be good news for Finchem. If recently- released viewing figures are anything to go by, America's ever-shortening attention span is causing many of Uncle Sam's nieces and nephews to reach for their remotes when a golfer appears on their TV screens - Tiger or no Tiger. Should the Fed-Ex series fail to deliver - sorry, couldn't resist that - it is hard to imagine where the PGA Tour would go next. China, probably. Still, all of that is for the future.

As for Wentworth...

Even at the new, turbo-charged Wentworth, misgivings remain. Take Ernie Els's new fairway bunkers - one left, one right - on the opening hole. While O'Grady enthused about how their presence would provoke players into thinking on the tee, it was hard not to shake one's head inwardly.

Rather than encouraging thought and choice, the traps dictate only how the hole has to be played. As things stand, the drive is now merely a test of execution - can you hit it between the bunkers?

Had Els placed one or more bunker up the left side, which offers the more favourable angle into the distant green, and merely left the right side as it was, the players would have been offered a genuine option. Driving close to the bunker would bring reward in the shape of an easier approach; playing safe down the right would take the sand out of play, but leave a more difficult second shot.

That's called strategy, folks.

Come to think of it, a bunker stuck right in the middle of the fairway would have been better. That really would have made the players ponder.

MacDuff's Post-Memphis FedEx Cup Standings

 MacDuff reports that only 5 of the top 40 in the FedEx Cup race played in Memphis, and for good measure he gives us everyone with 2000 points this week.

I'm thinking that at this point in the FedEx Cup season, there's going to need to be a prize that makes us give a hoot about this thing. But not more money, please. Maybe some NetJets time for the top 5 or something? 

^{1    Mickelson    17509.37        11
2    Furyk    16475        11
3    Glover    15854.16        11
4    C.Campbell    15587.5        13
5    Singh    15221.87        12
6    Toms    14821.87        10
7    Gf. Ogilvy    13762.5        9
8    Van Pelt    13440        14
9    Pettersson    13258.33        13
10    Oberholser    12775        11
11    Weir    12734.37        10
12    Appleby    12662.5        10
13    Pernice    12600        9
14    Sabbatini    12541.66        11
15    Gay    12525        12
16    Donald    12014.37        8
17    Mayfair    12004.16        11
18    Goosen    11775        8
19    Pampling    11672.5        10
20    Verplank    11612.5        9
21    Cink    11408.83        10
22    B. Quigley    11200        9
23    Z.Johnson    11150        10
24    Funk    11100        11
25    Herron    10982.5        9
26    D.Wilson    10937.5        11
27    T.Clark    10897.5        10
28    Olazabal    10875        7
29    Ames    10862.5        8
30    Parnevik    10767.5        12
31    T.Woods    10659.37        6
32    Bohn    10575.83        11
33    Vn Taylor    10487.5        9
T34    Love III    10375        10
T34    Hoffman    10375        10
T36    Choi    10350        9
T36    Senden    10350        9
38    Els    10037.5        9
39    Villegas    10062.5        10
40    Jerry Kelly    10025        8
41    Warren    10012.5        10
42    Purdy    9925        10
43    RS Johnson    9880        9
44    Lehman    9825        10
45    A.Scott    9625        7
46    Palmer    9066.66        10
47    Immelman    9000        7
48    Chopra    8992        11
49    J.Ogilvie    8945        9
50    Watney    8912.5        10
51    Estes    8837.5        9
52    Bertsch    8725        10
53    Leonard    8708.33        10
54    Hart    8680        9
55    Imada    8680        10
56    Crane    8645        8
57    Waldorf    8525        10
58    JJ Henry    8275        8
59    Baird    8242.5        8
60    Howell III    8137.5        12
61    Franco    8087.5        8
62    G. Owen    7975        8
63    Harrington    7962.5        7
64    Couples    7925        8
65    Garcia    7900        7
66    Wetterich    7850        6
67    N.Green    7837.5        9
68    Flesch    7742.5        11
69    Lowery    7700        10
70    Rollins    7675        7
71    Rose    7654.16        10
72    S. Maruyama    7462.5        9
73    Allenby    7450        7
74    Maggert    7437.5        8
75    JB Holmes    7420.83        7
76    F.Jacobson    7337.5        7
77    Branshaw    7325        8
78    Beem    7293.75        9
79    Micheel    7275        8
80    J.Smith    7225        8
81    Sluman    7112.5        11
82    Olin Browne    7075        12
83    Jobe    7017.5        8
84    Bjornstad    7005        9
85    Bryant    6937.5        7
86    DiMarco    6859.37        7
87    Baddeley    6850        7
88    Barlow    6712.5        8
89    Lonard    6675        8
90    Calc    6655        11
91    Langer    6541.66        8
92    JL Lewis    6512.5        10
93    Fischer    6425        9
94    M.Wilson    6415        7
95    Gronberg    6350        7
96    D. Howell    6262.5        5
97    Pat Perez    6262.5        7
98    Stricker    6225        5
99    Barron    6193.75        7
100    Poulter    6175        7
101    Pavin    6087.5        6
102    Azinger    6075        8
103    B. Haas    6050        8
104    Geiberger    6037.5        8
105    Br.Davis    5992.5        8
106    Bub Watson    5962.5        6
107    Sutherland    5900        8
108    Cook    5875        5
109    Austin    5850        11
110    Gove    5737.5        6
111    Leaney    5712.5        7
112    Slocum    5687.5        8
113    Curtis    5662.5        8
114    Atwal    5625        5
115    Kenny Perry    5587.5        6
116    Gore    5525        6
117    J.Byrd    5500        4
118    Ws Short Jr    5437.5        10
119    Durant    5400        9
120    Faxon    5312.5        8
121    Sindelar    5237.5        8
122    Westwood    5187.5        5
123    Goggin    5125.25        5
124    Cabrera    5100        5
125    Triplett    5062.5        6
126    Matteson    5037.5        7
127    D.Clarke    4900        4
128    Armour III    4700        6
129    Sean O'Hair    4575        7
130    Mahan    4550        9
131    Dickerson    4450        8
132    Lickliter II    4275        6
133    Frazar    4237.5        7
134    Veazey    4225        6
135    Andrade    4207.5        7
136    David Duval    4175        5
137    McCarron    4112.5        7
138    Garrigus    4055        7
139    S.Jones    4030        7
140    Stankowski    4015.5        7
141    Overton    3987.5        7
142    Ridings    3912.5        7
143    Kaye    3862.5        6
144    D.Maruyama    3787.5        6
145    Riley    3762.5        6
146    Allen    3750        7
147    K. Cox    3662.5        3
148    Kent Jones    3612.5        5
149    Gamez    3587.5        7
150    WMacKenzie    3562.5        4
151    Petrovic    3537.5        6
152    Points    3487.5        5
153    Brehaut    3400        7
154    Jimenez    3387.5        3
155    Nick Price    3325        3
156    Kevin Na    3275        4
157    Tway    3237.5        6
158    Katayama    3171.87        4
159    Danny Ellis    3087.5        5
160    Dawson    3062.5        6
161    Daly    3050        5
162    Couch    3025        3
163    H.Stenson    3012.5        3
164    Sheehan    2937.5        7
165    Goydos    2925        5
166    Hjerstedt    2902.5        3
167    Axley    2837.5        4
168    Levet    2812.5        7
169    Huston    2762.5        3
170    Bateman    2750        5
171    C. Beckman    2740        3
172    O'Hern    2700        2
173    Celka    2645        6
174    Trahan    2625        4
175    Kendall    2612.5        3
176    Janzen    2612.5        4
177    Walker    2462.5        5
178    Dn. Stiles    2450        3
179    M. Cambo    2437.5        2
180    Bob May    2400        3
181    Ken Duke    2375        2
182    L. Roberts    2262.5        2
183    Whittaker    2262.5        3
184    McDowell    2225        3
185    Driscoll    2225        6
186    Mize    2162.5        4
187    Tambellini    2150        5
188    Uresti    2137.5        2
189    Bren Jones    2050        2
190    VanDerWalt    2012.5        3
191    Coceres    2000        2
192    Hansen    2000        5}

"Reduced Playing Opportunities"

Golfweek's Rex Hoggard on the emerging FedEx Cup schedule:

At the heart of the Tour's new FedEx Cup schedule is a Tour Championship that wraps up in mid-September, essentially shortening what was a 12-month season. To a middle-of-the-pack player, "shorter season" is Tour talk for "fewer playing opportunities."

The Tour has countered that perception with a Fall Series that will be played after the Tour Championship and mainly feature players vying for their Tour cards. But the circuit has been slow to release the Fall portion of next year's lineup, a sign sponsors probably aren't flocking to Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla., to pony up a few million dollars to host what could essentially be the first stage of Q-School.

Although the phrase "reduced playing opportunities" has become a conversation killer around Tour headquarters, the reality is that the majority of PAC and Policy Board members ascended to the Tour via Q-School or the Nationwide Tour, and some of these players wonder what impact the schedule changes will have on the access for futures graduates.

"My biggest concern during this whole process is playing opportunities for these guys," said a PAC member. "We want the best field we can every week, but it's going to get to the point that there are only 12 Nationwide (graduates) who get to play regularly during the summer."
 

Paying Excessive Rent

Sam Weinman reports that the PGA Tour and Westchester Country Club have come to an agreement where the venerable course will host the new FedEx "playoff" event four of the next six years.

And here's why the Tour execs get the big bucks...

For the club, there appears to be much to like about the deal. In it, the tour would pay the club $800,000 in years that it hosts the Classic, and $400,000 in years that the tournament is played elsewhere.

Since the two parties haven't determined whether the event will be held at Westchester three or four years, the total value of the six-year contract would be either $3.6 million or $4 million. That's compared to the current contract that was supposed to extend through 2010, in which the club would receive $500,000 a year over the next four years.

Wow, $800,000 for not hosting two events. When did Westchester CC become a charity? 

"The new identity leverages the equity of both the FedEx and PGA TOUR logos."

From PGATour.com, on the big news that a logo has been developed for the FedEx Cup:

"The FedEx Cup, represented by this new tri-color logo, will become synonymous with a new measurement of achievement on the PGA TOUR," said Ric Clarson, senior vice president, brand marketing for the PGA TOUR. "Fans will associate this logo with a dynamic season-long competition to determine the FedEx Cup champion."

You hope.

 "We are excited to launch the next phase of our sponsorship of the PGA TOUR by introducing the new logo for the FedEx Cup," said Laurie Tucker, senior vice president of marketing at FedEx. "This will further help us to establish FedEx as the premier sponsor of the PGA TOUR and highlight our consistent values of reliability, excellence and leadership."

Oh and here's the money quote...

"The new identity leverages the equity of both the FedEx and PGA TOUR logos. These brands are best of class. Combined, the new logo communicates that FedEx Cup is a pinnacle event in golf," said Tucker.

The new identity leverages the equity of both the FedEx and PGA TOUR logos.

And we wonder why people hate America?