Cog Hill contenders have a lot to play for on Sunday

LEMONT, Ill. -- Never say never. But this is Tiger Woods we're talking about. And he does have a seven-shot lead.

So while the engraver hasn't etched Tiger Woods' name on the J.K Wadley Cup, the BMW Championship is certainly his for the taking. But there is still plenty for others to play for at Cog Hill on Sunday.

Remember those 30 spots in the finale of the PGA TOUR Playoffs for the FedExCup? Play hard on Sunday, and one of those could be yours -- and don't doubt for a minute that's not significant to the ones lucky enough to succeed.

THE TOUR Championship presented by Coca-Cola will decide the winner of that eye-popping $10 million bonus. And an added benefit? Everyone who gets to play at East Lake -- not just the FedExCup champ -- earns an invitation to the first three majors of 2010.

The points will be reset Sunday night after the BMW Championship is over, but one thing doesn't change. The players in the top five control their destiny, and a victory in THE TOUR Championship delivers the FedExCup to any of them.

That's why Padraig Harrington's performance at Cog Hill could be key. He's tied for fourth in the BMW Championship -- and based on the projections through three rounds, he's moved up three spots to No. 4 in the FedExCup.

What a climb it's been, too. The affable Dubliner was ranked No. 142 in the standings entering the World Golf Championships-Bridgestone Invitational. He tied for second there, 10th at the PGA, second at The Barclays and fourth last week at the Deutsche Bank Championship to surge into the mix.

Tiger Woods appears destined to regain the No. 1 spot that Steve Stricker seized when he won at TPC Boston last week. Heath Slocum's mercurial rise from No. 124 to third with that win at The Barclays appears safe, as well.

Obviously, there is plenty of golf to be played. But Sunday's final round could have major-league proportions for at least 10 others -- on both the plus and the minus side of the FedExCup ledger.

If the BMW Championship had ended on this sun-kissed Saturday, four players would have moved into the top 30 -- Brandt Snedeker, Marc Leishman, Matt Kuchar and Luke Donald. Mike Weir is now in the precarious position as the bubble boy, dropping three spots from No. 27.

The four currently displaced are Ian Poulter, who started the week ranked No. 30; British Open champ Stewart Cink, who dropped eight spots to 33rd; Jerry Kelly, who fell 10 to No. 34, and Charley Hoffman, who started at No. 28.

Meanwhile, local favorite Mark Wilson, who has never played in THE TOUR Championship, is tied for sixth and currently sits at an oh-so-close No. 31.

Leishman is one of two rookies left in the Playoffs. He all but locked up his TOUR card in finishing 15th last week and should he get to the Playoff finale, he just may be the frontrunner for PGA TOUR Rookie of the Year.

The 25-year-old Aussie fired a 68 on Saturday to move into a tie for second with Snedeker -- and jump 51 spots in the projected standings to No. 16. He's trying hard to stay focused on the task at hand.

"You just worry about playing golf and try not to think about it," Leishman said. "(Getting to East Lake is) worth so much. I am trying not to think about fourth. I'm trying to think about (finishing) first.

"Well, maybe, second now," he grinned.

Snedeker, the 2007 Rookie of the Year, has a renewed interest in the game after spending eight weeks on the shelf due to cracked rib in his right side. Good thing, too, since the Huck Finn look-a-like has now played 13 of the last 14 weeks and has four top-five finishes, including second at the John Deere Classic during that stretch.

Saturday's 66 earned Snedeker a share of second and a spot in the final group with Woods -- the first time the two have ever played together. He plans to embrace the opportunity on several fronts.

"I went from not having a job about six months ago to at least being safe for next year and hopefully have a good day tomorrow and am getting into THE TOUR Championship," said Snedeker, who is currently projected at No. 7 in the FedExCup after starting the week 42nd.

"This is what we do for a living. ... I've rediscovered how much I love the game, and been playing a lot, and it's fun."

Kuchar won the 1997 U.S. Amateur the year after Woods turned pro and halted his stranglehold on USGA titles at six straight, including three U.S. Juniors. That victory also happened to come at Cog Hill which is a "lot meaner" than he remembers.

Kuchar, who was a four-time All-American at Georgia Tech, still lives in the Atlanta area. Not surprisingly, then, getting to play in THE TOUR Championship for the first time is extremely important to him.

Kuchar started the Playoffs ranked 77th but has climbed steadily after tying for 28th at The Barclays and 15th last week at the Deutsche Bank Championship. He's currently projected at No. 26, which is a 20-spot jump.

"It would mean an awful lot to play at East Lake, which is almost a home course for me, in front of Atlanta, the hometown friends, the hometown family,"

Kuchar acknowledged. "... It's something I've set my goal the last couple years to make East Lake. I haven't been able to make it, and now I have an awfully good shot.

"These Playoffs have been exciting for me. I don't know how they've treated all the other players, but it's given me a chance."