"We don't want to talk about the FedEx Cup, do we?"

The scribblers, already fired up about having an execution chamber viewing area and Vijay choosing not to talk to them, are declaring the demise of FedEx Cup. Of course that assumes it ever reached a peak before declining. Let's face it, the entire thing was flawed for two reasons: Tiger and Phil. The system was designed to ensure they would be eligible until the finish, and as long as the points gurus have to gear the entire thing about guiding the tour's two biggest draws to the weekend at East Lake, it will always be flawed.

Here are some of the reviews and other complications being raised, starting with Gary Van Sickle:

Then Villegas was asked if it was disappointing that he tied for third at the Deutsche Bank Championship (at which Singh won after a closing 63) and won at Bellerive but can't take the FedEx Cup as long as Vijay simply finishes four rounds in Atlanta. Villegas put on a solemn face. "We don't want to talk about the FedEx Cup, do we?" he asked plaintively.

Let's see, the FedEx Cup winner doesn't want to talk about the FedEx Cup. Neither does the BMW Championship winner. The intensity of FedEx Cup buzzkill is apparently at Category 4 strength.

Cameron Morfit, also on golf.com:

Unless you subscribe to the idea that sex appeal is a pocket protector and a calculator, the Tour's current math-heavy approach is a big part of the problem, even ignoring its terrible results.

Bob Carney at GolfDigest.com shares reader letters while Thomas Bonk reveals the disastrous ratings (at least the public knows a soulless golf course when it sees it):

The third round Saturday of the BMW Championship had a 1.1 overnight rating on NBC, down from a 2.6 in 2007; and Sunday's fourth round had a 1.2 overnight rating, down from a 3.2 in 2007.

Steve Elling questions why the top 30 to reach East Lake are getting Masters and U.S. Open invitations.

The FedEx points structure was re-jiggered this season to weight the playoff performances more strongly and to de-emphasize the overall season. Thus, journeymen pros like Kevin Sutherland and Dudley Hart, who each finished second in one of the three FedEx Cup series events to date, have cemented a spot in the first two majors next year.

It borders on absurdity. If I were a decision-maker at Augusta or the USGA, I'm not sure I'd listen to another self-serving pitch from the tour ever again. After months of foot-dragging, the tour revamped the FedEx rules in March, well after the Open and Masters exemptions had been re-upped for another year. Thus, if the tour can change its rules in midseason, then the USGA and Augusta National should do likewise by flushing the FedEx exemption category completely, effective immediately.

Broadly, the Masters traditionally required non-winners from the previous year to finish the season in the top 30 on the PGA Tour money list or inside the top 50 in the final world rankings in order to secure an invitation. There are five players in the 30-man field in Atlanta who don't appear likely to accomplish either, having taken the farcical FedEx freeway to Augusta and Bethpage Black, the U.S. Open site next summer.

In the span of 21 days -- or even less time for one-week one-offs like Hart and Sutherland -- a half-dozen players have cracked the Masters and Open field, barring the rescinding of the two major-championship exemption rules, which will soon be reviewed by their governing bodies.

Augusta National officials already have indicated that the club is keeping an eye on the FedEx exemption provision, while the USGA Championship Committee will conduct its next meeting Oct. 31. Speaking as a USGA member, the issue had better be on the agenda.

Update on 2008-09-09 16:31 by Geoff

Rich Lerner on TheGolfChannel.com:

On the subject of the PGA TOUR Playoffs for the FedExCup, I’m not a Wharton wiz with numbers, but when your SuperBowl is reduced to an exhibition game, a re-assessment is clearly in order.

Vijay Can Crawl Backwards Around East Lake And Still Win FedEx Cup

Doug Ferguson breaks the bad news to all six fans of the current FedEx Cup structure: the playoffs are over and they still have the Super Bowl to play.

With one Playoff event remaining, the FedExCup essentially is over.

Vijay Singh, who won the first two events, tied for 44th and earned enough points that all he has to do is complete four rounds at THE TOUR Championship presented by Coca-Cola in two weeks to collect the $10 million payoff.

Villegas, a 26-year-old Colombian in his third year on TOUR, finished at 15-under 265 and collected $1.26 million.

Bob Harig puts it in even more brutal perspective:

Singh can show up in Atlanta, play left-handed one day, blindfolded the next, shoot 100 during each round -- but as long as he completes four rounds he will be crowned the FedEx champion, receive a cool $9 million in cash, with $1 million deferred, and pocket some Tour Championship tip money as well.

How easily can Vijay Singh win the $10 million playoff bonus? Even if he didn't break 100 any of the four days at the Tour Championship, as long as he plays all 72 holes and doesn't get disqualified, the money is his.

But at least Vijay expressed his joy at clinching the $10 million.

Yep, Singh declined interviews with NBC, Golf Channel, print reporters. No words of thanks to FedEx or BMW or the PGA Tour or even Camilo Villegas, who won his first PGA Tour event and basically made it impossible for anyone to catch Singh -- unless he misses his tee time in Atlanta, gets disqualified or decides to stay at home and begin practicing for next year.

Speaking of next year, might this be a bad time to bring up the story I wrote last year for Golf World recommending a true playoff ending to prevent this little mini-debacle from happening? Or that I argued my case with Steve Dennis, FedEx Cup points guru who helped develop the increase volatility (which I think should stay...they just need a new way to end the fun at East Lake)?

Geoff Ogilvy was asked what he thought of the state of the FedEx Cup.

"If I make the Tour Championship I make it. If I don't, I really don't give a f...," the 2006 US Open champion said after the third round.

"I'm not going to lie in bed tonight thinking about what I have to do tomorrow to get in. It's not the Tour Championship it used to be.

"It probably meant more before than it does now, because it was a reward for 40 weeks.

"Now it's a nod to the year and making the cut at (the first two play-off events). The four weeks (of play-offs) are as important as the 40 preceding them."

Okay I'll give a little. They can just go back to last year's points to retain regular season relevancy, make East Lake an ADT-like finish and everyone wins! Including, let us not forget, charity.

Update on 2008-09-08 03:18 by Geoff

Scott Michaux makes the case for the new FedEx Cup points structure cheapening Masters invites for the top 30 making it to the Tour Championship.

“Where do you get the happy medium?”

Doug Ferguson considers the state of the PGA Tour's FedEx Cup points volatility and includes this item which is precisely why I think the new points system is working (if a "playoff" is what they are after):

The biggest headache in all this is Padraig Harrington. You remember him as the British Open and PGA champion, a feat accomplished only by Tiger Woods the last half-century. Then he missed two cuts in a row and won’t get to East Lake unless he finishes fifth in St. Louis.

“Do you want a two-time major winner not in the Tour Championship?” Furyk asked.

It’s a fair question, but it’s missing the broader point.

The Tour Championship is no longer a reward for a great season. It’s a reward for a great month. That’s what the PGA Tour Playoffs are all about this year because of the volatility. And volatility is what the players wanted last year.

At least some of them.

“It’s a fight between the haves and have-nots a little bit, like in everything else,” Furyk said. “All the guys in the top 40 are complaining it’s too volatile, all the guys at the end are saying it’s great. Last year, everyone in the top 40 said, ‘This is great,’ all the guys at the other end said, ‘This (stinks).

“Where do you get the happy medium?”

Phil: Volatility Means I Can Spend More Time Not Playing!

Steve Elling notes Phil Mickelson's bizarre remarks Wednesday.

With it becoming increasingly obvious that the sweeping points overhaul has placed too much emphasis on the performances of players in the four-event playoff series and devalued the importance of play in the regular season, Phil Mickelson dropped a bomb Thursday at the Deutsche Bank Championship that probably had a few officers at tour headquarters reaching for aspirin, if not hankies.

Those aren't raindrops from the latest tropical storm falling in Ponte Vedra Beach, those are teardrops of sheer fright. After a handful of prominent players had expressed the opinion Thursday that the new FedEx points system had overreached, Mickelson offered an entirely unanticipated answer.

"I think that the intent was to have more turnover, and certainly it has done that," he said. "I don't feel as though the season, the regular season, has anywhere near the same impact that it had, and so that could be a good thing because now we don't have to play as many events if we don't want to."

Uh-oh.

The points volatility is going to shine a big bright light on something we've known all along: way too many of the PGA Tour's finest are spoiled, unimaginative or willing to realize just how weak their "product" is these days. 

Of course it means the regular season means less. But for a little excitement at the end, isn't it worth it? Do these guys realize how little interest there is in the PGA Tour playoffs?

Volatility Verdicts

Alan Shipnuck likes the new playoff points system:

The much-hyped playoff format that sportswriters love to hate is off to a rollicking start. Besides the buzz of Sergio's sudden death, there are Ryder Cup spots up for grabs and the new points system has created a lot more more week-to-week excitement. Bottom line: don't ever bet against Finchem.

Meanwhile John Hawkins levels a verdict in this week's Golf World, and seems to have agreement from a member of the Tour policy board:

When the tour's Policy Board began reviewing the first FedEx Cup finish in late 2007, it came up with two primary objectives: create dramatic movement in the standings and make the superstars play in all four postseason events. Thus, the decision was made to turn up the dials on everything that would encourage volatility.

The problem? Almost everyone ignored the fragility. Singh earned 11,000 points for winning the Barclays -- just eight players reached that total in the entire regular season. You want crazy? A solo third at one of the first three playoff tournaments pays 5,400 points, which is more than Trevor Immelman, Woods, Padraig Harrington (and Harrington again) got for each of their major championship victories earlier this year. Simply making the cut at Ridgewood was worth 2,098, almost 400 points more than Rich Beem got for a solo third a week earlier in Greensboro.

Seriously, folks, you can't make up this stuff. "We went overboard," acknowledged policy board member Joe Ogilvie. "We overcooked it, and I'm sure we'll revise [again], but at least we know we took it too far.

"We were given various [projections], so we fully knew what we were getting into," Ogilvie added. "Mark Wilson [a member of the Player Advisory Council] was the one guy who thought we were going too far. I remember him warning us of what might happen. The problem isn't so much the player who wins as it is the player who finishes 135th, makes two [postseason] cuts and jumps into the top 70. That's not in the spirit of the playoffs, or shouldn't be."

Last year we had to wait to issue a verdict, now we're declaring the points revamping DOA after week one. I love these guys!

Update on 2008-08-28 03:14 by Geoff

Doug Ferguson chimes in and talks to Padraig Harrington, who seems to have the best perspective on the playoff volatility:

"I think it's a fair reflection that I dropped about 20 spots by missing the cut,'' Harrington said. "I think it should be very volatile. That's what a playoff system should be like. You've got to go produce.''

If he could change one thing, Harrington would make it even more combustible by awarding big points to the top 10 finishers in a tournament, minimal points for those barely making the cut.

Either way, he came to one conclusion in Year Two of this system.

"I think the FedEx Cup is working,'' he said. "It's got more players out here playing, more players interested at this time of the year. It's creating a bit of a buzz. If players aren't exactly happy with the system at the moment ... no press is bad press. Something like that. People are talking about it, and that's the main thing.''

"I was hesitant to weight the playoffs this heavily, to be honest"

Boy, you try and tweak to deliver volatility and now they aren't happy!

Steve Elling complains about the new FedEx Cup volatility and finds a soul sister in PGA Tour policy board member Stewart Cink, who has already rendered his verdict.

Now we all have motion sickness. Vijay Singh collected his fourth career Barclays title and jumped from seventh to first in FedEx points, and while that sounds like healthy leapfrogging, it was the absolute least tumult that could have happened given the far-flung scenarios that might have played out at Ridgewood Country Club.

Here's a real after-the-fact kicker. Cink has been a good company man all season and widely espoused the benefits of the new points system, but now that there are some crazy cracks showing and his peers are questioning him about the merits of the details the Policy Board authorized, he has come clean.

"I was hesitant to weight the playoffs this heavily, to be honest," he said.

Because lord knows you are entitled to another year end check for showing up four more times and continuing the mediocrity.

I have to say that for some bigtime free market preachers, some of these PGA Tour dudes sure don't like a little, uh, volatility driven by market forces (in this case, those forces are called playing well.) Imagine if they had a true playoff, or even a modified one and wiped the slate clean at some point. The bitching would epic!

Right now, that list would include Kevin Sutherland, a veteran with one career win, who hadn't been noticed in weeks and lost in a three-way playoff Sunday with Singh and Sergio Garcia. Or winless veteran Mathew Goggin, who hadn't been noticed all season.

"It's more than just about the bonus money," Cink said. "Guys who played well all year are getting knocked out of majors."

Ahhhh....now the truth comes out. Has that really happened yet?

"Meanwhile the FedEx Cup remains a play for relevance via monetization and marketing, which looks especially silly every other year, when top players are more concerned about playing for God and country at the Ryder Cup."

Here I was thinking we had at least another two weeks before the FedEx Cup obituaries started rolling in and Cameron Morfit had to go and pen one before the art department could even come up with a cutesy graphic.

The FedEx Cup is stuck in a major end-of-season traffic jam. All of the individual events anyone cares about are over. In fact, judging from the breathless, parking lot stakeouts of Brett Favre, the press and public tuned out the Tiger-less Tour even during the year's final major. Paddy's PGA was no match for Brett's SUV.

And still the FedEx soldiers on despite the Olympics and an upcoming two-week break after the BMW Championship, necessitated by the Ryder Cup. Ultimately only 30 players will convene for the FedEx finale, the Tour Championship at East Lake outside Atlanta, because the smaller the field, the more "exclusive" (important) it is.

That's the idea, anyway. In reality a limited field holds limited appeal because it increases the likelihood that one hot player will run away with the tournament. It happened last year with Woods, but a mere mortal also could run away and hide with only 29 other guys chasing him. (A total of 315 players started the U.S. Amateur on Monday.)

Of course if there was a true playoff and daily eliminations at East Lake it wouldn't be so dull, would it?

Perhaps the FedEx champion won't be determined until the back nine on Sunday of the Tour Championship. That would be nice, but the rules are complicated. The Tour has arbitrarily narrowed the gap between players to start the playoffs, from 1,000 to 500 points. Every player who makes the cut at the Barclays will get 2,000 more points than he would have last year. This is meant to create more volatility up and down the standings.

The Amateur is simple. Two guys go into a match, and only one lives to play another day, sometimes after a wild momentum swing or five, which is typical of match play.

And if you had daily eliminations you would...oh continue on Cameron:

Meanwhile the FedEx Cup remains a play for relevance via monetization and marketing, which looks especially silly every other year, when top players are more concerned about playing for God and country at the Ryder Cup.

FedEx Cup Points Tweaks Receive...Reviews

I've searched but could only find two stories detailing the FedEx Cup point system changes announced Tuesday. Stan Awtrey talks to Tour Championship director Todd Rhinehart and writes in the AJC:

The two changes should make it easier for players to move up in the playoff standings and increase the number of players with a chance to win the FedEx Cup. Had the alterations been in place in 2007, The Tour Championship would have started with 12 players having a chance to win it all, twice the actual number. And six players would have had a realistic chance to win.

"This is what we wanted," Rhinehart said. "If you can win it when everything is on the line, you deserve it. It makes it more exciting."

So in other words, that wasn't possible last year! We were duped!

Somehow I don't think it's going to get any more playoff-like under the new points system.

Steve Elling offers this: 
Had the tweaks been on the books last year, the number of players who had a mathematic chance of winning the $10 million bonus at the series-ending Tour Championship in Atlanta would have increased from six to 12.

"It's the Rich Beem story," Finchem said, citing a player who was so far back in the regular-season points, he had little chance of advancing despite some solid postseason play. "Players felt you ought to be able to move more aggressively. And when we get to Atlanta, we should have more players in the hunt, which is what players and fans were interested in.

"It does shift the balance a touch, but it was really done to get that guy who was hot to get further through the playoffs."

But he still has no chance of winning the whole thing at East Lake, and therein will always lie the problem.  

Policy Board Sides With "Under" Bettors On Cuts Policy, "Over" Takers On Playoff Points Fare Well Too

Strap in, here comes the spin...

PGA TOUR Commissioner Tim Finchem said, “As we have previously discussed, we feel that the FedExCup in its inaugural year was very successful, and we did not feel the need to make significant changes to its essential structure. But because of significant feedback from players and fans asking for more volatility and an increase in the number of players in the hunt at THE TOUR Championship presented by Coca-Cola, we are making two adjustments that we feel will result in an even higher level of fan excitement and interest as we move into and through the Playoffs.”

You'll be shocked to know they did not take my advice, but instead, are just adding to the points permutation tedium for another year:

A narrowing of the gap between players’ point totals at the reset going into the Playoffs.  For example, the gap between the 1st and 2nd ranked players was 1,000 points at the reset last year.  That gap has been reduced to 500 points this year, with similar reductions being made all the way down to 144th place. (See Attachment for specifics).

The number of FedExCup points available at Playoff events has been increased by 2,000 additional points per finish position.  For example, a 3rd place finish was worth 3,400 points in 2007; it is now worth 5,400 points.  In essence, players who play well will move up more dramatically than in 2007.  (See Atttachment for specifics. Note: For rounding purposes, the points increases at THE TOUR Championship will differ slightly from the first three Playoff events).

And this means?

The effect of these two changes will be some improvement in a player’s ability to make substantial gains in overall position based on excellent play in the Playoffs, while also increasing the number of players who will have a shot at winning the FedExCup.

If these two changes had been in place for the 2007 Playoffs, for example, the effect would have been to increase from six to 12 the number of players with a mathematical chance of winning the FedExCup, and instead of only four players with a realistic chance of winning, there would have been six.

Well, at least they confirmed that only four had a chance of winning last year.

And now for the new cut policy:

Under the amended regulation, the starting field will still be reduced to the lowest 70 professionals and ties after 36 holes.  However, should the 36-hole cut total more than 78 professionals, there will be a second cut to the lowest 70 professionals plus ties at the conclusion of 54 holes of tournament play.  Players not advancing to the final round of play will receive their appropriate share of the official prize money in accordance with their respective positions.  The change is effective immediately, beginning with this week’s Honda Classic.

In other news...

An increase in the field size at the Memorial Tournament from 105 players to 120, in keeping with the Board’s intent to stage all invitational events with a field size of no less than 120 players. The change is effective with the 2008 event.

And...

Following two additional years (2008 and 2009) at Grayhawk Golf Club’s Raptor Course, The Fry’s Electronics Open will move in 2010 to the Fry’s Electronics-owned course called The Institute, located near San Jose, California. Upon its move to The Institute, the event will be renamed The Institute Championship and will become an invitational event with a 120 player field.

And invitational in the fall? Hmmm...interesting.

And should someone decide to take out Stephen Ames if he dares to win again...

The LG Skins Game eligibility has been slightly modified to address a situation where the defending champion or leading money winner is unable to participate. Under the new regulation, a floor of 5th place on the prior year money list has been implemented, and if a player among the top 5 places on the money list is not available to complete the field, the field will then be completed with an additional player of the host organization’s choosing.

"They gave me hours on my Marquis Jet Card, they even threw a party in New York.”

Sallie Brady pens a New York Times "Escapes" piece on the burgeoning market for homes in various Latin countries. Included are a couple of fun anecdotes and even more reminders at how poor most of us are:

On Anguilla, Mr. Kanavos has developed the island’s first golf course, designed by Greg Norman, in the Baccarat Hotels and Residences at Temenos, a 115-villa project with a spa and a David Bouley restaurant. Eager to appeal to high-end buyers, Mr. Kanavos successfully lobbied the government to extend the airport runway to accommodate private jets.

“I’ve been to almost every Caribbean island and this was Shangri-La” said Kenny Bergstol, 48, a New City, N.Y.,-based developer of golf courses and real estate, who bought a three-bedroom villa at Temenos, where furnished villas are priced from $1.4 million to $13.2 million. “While my home is being built, they’re letting me and my family stay at the resort for a week a year, they gave me hours on my Marquis Jet Card, they even threw a party in New York.”

And this ought to bring great joy to the branding team in Ponte Vedra: 

“I had thought about buying a piece of property and putting a hacienda up on it, but there are issues in Mexico,” said Larry Harvey, 43, a wealth consultant in The Woodlands, Tex., who recently bought a two-bedroom town house at the Viceroy Mayakobá, part of a new 1,600-acre golf community along the Riviera Maya, 42 miles south of Cancún, that Viceroy is developing around a Greg Norman championship course with the Rosewood, Fairmont and Banyan Tree resort developers.

Mr. Harvey was referring to a Mexican law that puts limits on foreigners who seek to buy near the coast. Mexico employs a system that allows a Mexican bank to act as a trustee on behalf of a purchaser of this restricted land.

“I had stayed at the Viceroy Santa Monica and liked it,” said Mr. Harvey, noting the California hotel’s designer, Kelly Wearstler, is also designing the Mexico property. "I have four boys who are learning how to play golf, and my wife, Mari, and I like the fact that the FedEx Cup is here in February. We’ll be able to rent” Mr. Harvey said.

The FedEx Cup is coming! The FedEx Cup is coming! 

It's A Miracle: FedEx Cup Points Tweak On The Way

The Tour Championship will still be a dud most years, but at least they're trying to make the "playoffs" more volatile. From John Hawkins in the new Golf World:

Not that anybody ever understood the FedEx Cup point-distribution system to begin with, but a series of significant changes will be submitted in a proposal to the Players Advisory Committee when it meets next month. In an attempt to make Woods and Mickelson play in all the postseason events, playoff points would increase dramatically, perhaps by as much as 2,000 per spot. For example, the value of a 10th-place finish in Boston would leap from 1,350 to 3,350.

What's strange about this option is that the 2,000-point raise runs consistently down to the player who finishes 70th, meaning a measly 100 points would become 2,100. Nobody ever said the tour doesn't reward mediocrity, but the official purpose of the increase is to generate more volatility in the postseason standings, something that was clearly missing in the 2007 debut.

"As it turned out, the top 22 [regular-season finishers] had a free pass to the Tour Championship," Ogilvie says, referring to the 30-man season finale. "I think the consensus is that we'd like that number to be a lot smaller."

"The players are open to something that's new and exciting and fun."

In Golf World's year-end "newsmakers" issue, I pitch an alternate scenario the PGA Tour should consider for the conclusion to the FedEx Cup. Granted, I'm simply advocating that they adopt an ADT Championship-like format for the finale.

Based on some of the post ADT comments here and here, I think some of you would agree. But, I'd still love to hear what you all think even though we've probably covered the FedEx Cup enough!

Oh and on the ADT front, Craig Dolch reports that no major changes are in order. And why should they be?

Verdi: FedEx Cup Changes Finalized

I get the week off, but I don't get the possible change of heart on the deferred compensation...

If ratified, the playoffs will be held as follows: The Barclays in New York Aug. 18-24, Deutsche Bank in Boston Aug. 25-Sept. 1, and the BMW Championship in St. Louis Sept. 2-7. As first reported in the Sept. 21 issue of Golf World, the Tour Championship, originally scheduled for the following week, would then be contested later in Atlanta.

The board also will address the Fed Ex Cup payoff, which was $10 million deferred to the champion, Tiger Woods, in its initial year. One possibility is that a substantial amount--perhaps as much as $9 million--will be issued up front. In addition, the board will study a proposal to decrease the size of playoff fields to 120 at Barlcays, 90 at Deutsche Bank, and 60 at the BMW. The field for the Tour Championship is expected to remain at 30.

Points Tweaks To Encourage Volatility**

According to Doug Ferguson, who reviews the 2007 PGA Tour season:

Tour officials are busy running hundreds of models to tweak the [FedEx Cup] points system, putting particular emphasis on players’ concerns the four playoff events were not volatile enough. In other words, they want more guys to have a chance, but it’s a tough balancing act keeping the regular season meaningful.

Any volatility would help quite a bit, much more so than reducing the field sizes. 

Update on 2007-11-06 16:14 by Geoff

Golf World's Jim Moriarty quotes Joe Durant, who seems less than thrilled with the progress on a FedEx Cup "tweak."

"I will say this. After the FedEx Cup was over this year, they were open to ­pretty much any and all suggestions," he said. "They want to make it better going forward, as we all do. The flip side of that, we sat in Scottsdale last week [to] talk about changing the point structure and [said] we'd like to see some models, but there were no models presented to us to show us how it would change. I think guys were frustrated with that because we want to see what's on the table. What can we do to change it? Now, we're going to have another PAC [Players Advisory Council] meeting by phone after next week and then we have the policy-board meeting after that. We've got to make some ­pretty quick decisions. The point structure doesn't necessarily have to be changed until the playoffs, but guys just want to have it put to bed."

And...

"I think more than anything, guys want to see a little more volatility at the end of the year, especially in the playoff tournaments. When you only have one or two or three guys moving in and out of tournaments, that's not enough movement, I don't think. Most guys felt the same way."

"It's like a glorified club championship."

Bob Harig reports that you can kind of feel the Fall Series dying right before our eyes and offers up some tough comments from Steve Flesch:

Dubbed the Fall Series, the final seven events on the PGA Tour schedule will mercifully come to an end next week in Orlando, where the biggest stories will revolve around players losing their full-time status (despite making $700,000 this year) or secure veterans who try to fit in golf around visits to the Disney theme parks.

"There were 100 people following the final group last Sunday in Scottsdale," said PGA Tour veteran Steve Flesch. "It's like a glorified club championship. I don't think that's what the tour intended. And I think they need to address it."

And this from another reliable mind: 

"It's a slap in the face to some of those events to almost label them B-class events," said Daniel Chopra, who was in contention for his first PGA Tour victory at the weather-plagued Ginn. "Disney's been around for years. Vegas has great history at that event. ... We need to do something because these sponsors are putting up a lot of money, and the tournaments are not getting the respect they deserve."

Harig also explores possible solutions, including one that I remember hearing in the early FedEx Cup chatter: points in the fall counting for the following season.

I've always wondered why that notion died. Seemed like a win-win for the Tour, FedEx and the fall event sponsors. Oh, and those guys the Tour revolves around, the players.