Players vie for position as FedEx Cup season nears end
Published
What seems like the longest season in professional sports is nearing completion for 2025.
Including this week’s John Deere Classic, there are just seven events left in the PGA Tour’s regular season before the three-event FedEx Cup playoffs begin. Two of those run concurrent to others so, in effect, a golfer has, at the most, five tournaments left.
While this part of the calendar doesn’t have an official or even unofficial name such as the West Coast Swing, it could go by the FedEx Final Frenzy. It’s the time when players realize they need to find another gear to make it into various levels of exemptions for next season.
This year, that frenzy has a more rabid feeling to it as the PGA Tour will hand out fewer exemptions than in past seasons. There are some big-name golfers on the outside of the various cut-off points who will need to play well to not only make the playoffs, but in some cases, retain their playing privileges on the tour.
Here’s how things break down:
Top 100
In past years, the top 125 finishers retained their exempt status for the following year. That’s dropped to just the best 100 for this year as the PGA Tour moves to smaller field sizes for 2026. Those who end up 101st to 125th will only have conditional status.
Notable names such as Sahith Theegala, Max Homa, Emiliano Grillo and Zach Johnson are currently outside the top 100. For Canadian fans, the list includes three notables: Adam Svensson (168), Ben Silverman (166) and, perhaps most eyebrow-raising, Adam Hadwin (120).
He’s been working on some swing changes that haven’t taken hold as quickly as he would have liked and he has just a single top-10 finish. Hadwin has ended the last two seasons inside the top 50 so the drop has been precipitous.
Top 70
The top 70 finishers on the FedEx Cup standings will advance to the playoffs. Those start Aug. 7 with the FedEx St. Jude Classic in Memphis, Tenn., followed by the BWM Championship in Owings Mills, MD., and then the Tour Championship from Atlanta, Ga.
There is $100 million in bonus money for those who make the playoffs, with the eventual FedEx Cup champion taking $10 million of that.
Finishing inside the top 70 means players are fully exempt for 2026. Those from 51-70 don’t get starts in the Signature events but do earn spots in the Players Championship.
At present, there are plenty of notables on the outside looking in: Rickie Fowler (72), Wyndham Clark (77), Adam Scott (82) and Tom Kim (90).
Top 50
Those who end up in the top 50 are fully exempt for next season and also get spots in the eight Signature events. Those have large purses and most don’t have cuts (the Memorial, Arnold Palmer and Genesis cut to the top 50 and any player within 10 of the lead).
Mac Hughes knows all about the top 50. He is presently sitting in 51st spot on the FedEx Cup rankings. Two years ago, he was in the same spot to end his year, or so he thought. When Jon Rahm left the PGA Tour for LIV, Hughes was bumped up into the all-important top 50.
Last year, he was close again, finishing up in 52nd spot. But there was no Hail Mary getting him inside the magic number this time.
This year, Taylor Pendrith is in a good situation in 34th spot. Of course, he’ll want to push one step further and move up into the top 30.
Top 30
This is the top tier on the FedEx Cup ranking. Finish the year in this group and a player has access to pretty much every event, including the Signature events, the Players and, indirectly, the majors.
Of course, these 30 golfers will also battle for the title of FedEx Cup champion. And to almost everyone’s delight, the staggered start with players beginning the tournament at various levels of under par is no more. Now, the top 30 players will vie for the Tour Championship title and the FedEx Cup title at the same time. And yes, that means there could be two different winners.
Getting to the top 30 is the goal for every golfer starting off the season. It allows them to pick their schedule and also cash lots of cheques from certain tournaments.
Currently, there are two Canadians in this elite group: Corey Conners (13) and Nick Taylor (17). Barring a near collapse, both players should be able to finish in the top 30, which means good paydays for the FedEx Cup season.
In addition to the FedEx Cup standings, there are other ways for players to be exempt into certain events. A major championship, a Players title, or a regular tour win could be in effect, as could a medical exemption that may give a player a certain number of starts.
So much to play for and so much movement in the standings to come. It’s a crazy time ahead.