On this Sunday, the FedExCup winner is truly anyone's guess

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Paul Casey can't win the FedExCup if Luke Donald wins THE TOUR Championship on Sunday.

ATLANTA -- The last three times the PGA TOUR's best have gathered at East Lake Golf Club for its annual fall classic, the identity of the winner of the FedExCup was all but a foregone conclusion.

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SCENARIOS: A handful of players are still mathmatically alive in the race for the FedexCup. Here is what they need on Sunday. More PLAYER REPORTS: How did the 30 players competing at THE TOUR Championship fare in the second round at East Lake? More

Tiger Woods won two of the first three PGA TOUR Playoffs for the FedExCup, No surprise there, especially since Woods entered the Playoffs ranked No. 1 in points. And Vijay Singh only had to sign his scorecard at the end of 72 holes of THE TOUR Championship presented by Coca-Cola to pocket the $10 million bonus in 2008 after winning the first two Playoffs events.

This Playoffs Sunday, though, has a decidedly different feel. Not only are there no sure bets, there are enough scenarios to set your head spinning like that little girl in "The Exorcist."

The top seven players on the leaderboard each have a legitimate chance to win the FedExCup. Jim Furyk, who owns a one-shot lead at 8 under, is currently projected at No. 1. But if Retief Goosen or Luke Donald -- who currently share second place -- end up winning, it's likely he will be holding the $10 million check and silver Tiffany trophy.

Ditto for Geoff Ogilvy, who starts the final round at 5 under, or Kevin Na, who is another stroke back. But Paul Casey, who came to East Lake ranked fifth in the FedExCup and is currently tied with Na, can win the eye-popping bonus if he finishes solo second. And No. 3 Charley Hoffman can mathematically do it by placing third ... that is, as long as Casey doesn't win or finish second.

Confused, yet? Well, don't be. Just approach Sunday the way the players will. Their eyes are on a victory at THE TOUR Championship, not scanning the scenarios for the best and worst cases that might unfold.

"It's hard not to put the FedExCup, and trying to win that, out of your mind," Furyk said. "But you really can't focus on that issue. The only thing I can really do tomorrow is go out and try to win a golf tournament.

"Where I finish in the FedExCup is going to depend on how I play, but it also depends on how the rest of the players play and where they fall in the order and there's nothing I can do about that. First and foremost I want to go out there and try to win a golf tournament tomorrow.

"I haven't had a three-win season in my career. It would be a good time to start."

"I'm just trying to win. Obviously, if I can win, I control my destiny."

-- Charley Hoffman

So far Furyk, who could become the frontrunner for Player of the Year with his third victory on Sunday, has been his usual consistent self. A bogey-free 67 put him in the hunt from the outset, and the veteran seized a share of the lead with Donald after a 65 on Friday. He was surprised that an even-par 70 kept him there, but Furyk was hardly complaining.

"Jim is very steady," said Donald, who trails by one. "He didn't do much wrong today, just kind of plodded his way around and picked off a couple birdies and a couple bogeys in there, too. ... But I know if I go out and shoot a good number, somewhere in the 60s, I'm going to have a chance."

Ditto for Goosen, the winner of the 2004 TOUR Championship, who shot his second straight 66 on Sunday. For him, the task is simple. "I probably feel that Jim is the guy to beat," he said of the man who will be his playing partner in Sunday's 11:20 a.m. draw. "If I finish ahead of him, then I've probably got a good chance of winning."

East Lake admittedly has been stingy this week, but Nick Watney showed the other 29 players in the field that there was a low round out there when he shot 63 on Saturday. That's good news for players like Casey and Hoffman, who start the day four and five strokes back, respectively.

"I'm just trying to win a golf tournament, and I'm not trying to worry about the big check at the end of it," Casey said. "We'll have to see. I've got no idea. I'm far enough back right now, I can be aggressive. If you look at what somebody like Nick Watney did today, sort of down in the field a little bit, probably a little bit more relaxed, let some things go, you can certainly shoot some good numbers out there. ...

"... As far as I'm concerned I've got nothing to lose. Walking up the last hole there, the projected FedExCup ranking was about sixth. So I'm top 10 in the tournament, and actually dropping a spot in the FedExCup. So I've got absolutely nothing to lose. I've got to go for it and try and shoot at the flags and shoot lights out."

Donald

Hoffman did just that at TPC Boston when he closed with a 62 to win the Deutsche Bank Championship. He trailed Jason Day by four strokes entering the final round but promptly erased that deficit with 11 birdies. Hoffman ended up beating Ogilvy, Donald and Day -- sound familiar? -- by five and paved his way to East Lake with a 57-spot FedExCup jump.

"I'm just trying to win. Obviously, if I can win, I control my destiny," Hoffman said. "... I'm just going to try to put the ball in play off the tee, and if I'm in the fairway, I'm going to be aggressive at the greens and hopefully make some birdies early and get it going like I did in Boston.

"... There's only a few guys between the top and the bottom. All it takes is a few hiccups among the leaders and couple of good holes by me and all of a sudden I'm right in the mix."

A weather forecast that has prompted an early morning start on Sunday admittedly clouds the issue. But don't expect a little rain to put a damper on the FedExCup festivities or ease the pressure over the final few holes.

"That's a great place to be," Donald said. "I'd rather be there than having no chance at all. That's what makes it fun. I think it's going to be fun for the crowds, fun for the players. There's a lot that can happen tomorrow. We'll see who comes out on top."