The Five: Which big names are on FedExCup Playoffs bubble?
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Key players on FedExCup Playoffs bubble at Wyndham Championship
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Players in This Article
It’s put up or shut up time at the Wyndham Championship, the last stop on the PGA TOUR regular season calendar.
Only the top 70 will advance to the FedExCup Playoffs next week. The rest of the membership will watch from the sidelines and bide their time before the start of the FedExCup Fall in mid-September.
Which big names are at risk of missing the Playoffs, many for the first time? Let’s go through the notables fighting for their postseason lives this week at Sedgefield Country Club.
Jackson Koivun
- FedExCup rank: 70th
- Minimum finish required for top 70: N/A
It’s a testament to Koivun that he’s even in contention to make the playoffs with only four pro starts under his belt. Koivun fast-tracked his progression by outdueling Scottie Scheffler at the 3M Open and holds the last spot in the FedExCup Playoffs with a week to play.
It’s a great place to be, but a tenuous one.
The 21-year-old is the target for a majority of the field looking to supplant him in the standings. So, while Koivun could theoretically miss the cut this week and still make the Playoffs if those behind him faltered, that’s neither likely nor desired. Instead, Koivun will need to string together another strong performance.
Sandwiched on either side of his win, Koivun finished T10 at the ISCO Championship and T31 at the Rocket Classic. He will be kicking himself for a pair of late bogeys at Detroit Golf Club that knocked him out of a tie for 20th. Had he held his position, Koivun would have earned an additional 17 FedExCup points and valuable breathing room. Now, he holds only a 12-point advantage over No. 71 Mac Meissner, who could surpass Koivun with a solo 44th finish.
Jackson Koivun claims first PGA TOUR win at 3M Open
Keegan Bradley
- FedExCup rank: 72nd
- Minimum finish required for top 70: two-way tie for 38th
Bradley is part of a pack of veterans trying to avoid missing the FedExCup Playoffs for the first time in their careers. The 16-year pro sits just outside the bubble with one of the easier pathways in, needing at minimum a two-way tie for 38th to move inside the top-70 threshold.
Bradley has steadily climbed out of an early-season hole. He fell outside the top 120 just after THE PLAYERS Championship but has amassed six top-25 finishes since, including a T15 at last week’s Rocket Classic. That moved Bradley closer to the bubble, but he still has work to do.
Bradley has only four starts at the Wyndham Championship and has finished better than 40th only once, including a missed cut last year. He will need to improve that form if he hopes to continue his season and Playoffs streak.
Jason Day
- FedExCup rank: 75th
- Minimum finish required for top 70: two-way tie for 12th
Health is the predominant question for Day with the Wyndham Championship on the horizon. The Australian has withdrawn from each of the last two events before teeing off as he continues to deal with a back injury that forced him to end his U.S. Open early. The ill-timed injury might cost him a playoff spot, too.
Like Bradley, Day has never missed the FedExCup Playoffs. But in his 19th season, he’s on the cusp of ending prematurely. It will require phenomenal golf, even if he is healthy enough to tee it up. He needs, at minimum, a two-way tie for 12th to jump into the top 70.
Jason Day makes birdie on No. 18 at Travelers
Brooks Koepka
- FedExCup rank: 86th
- Minimum finish required for top 70: solo fourth
Can Koepka make it back to the Playoffs in his first season back on TOUR? It’s a tall task for the American, who will need at least a solo fourth finish if he hopes to continue his season. He also withdrew ahead of the Rocket Classic for unspecified reasons, casting some uncertainty over his availability for the final tournament of the regular season.
Another interesting note to follow. If Koepka does push himself inside the top 70, it would expand the field at TPC Southwind next week. Under the guidelines of the Returning Member Program, the field would be expanded to 71 if Koepka qualifies.
Tony Finau
- FedExCup rank: 89th
- Minimum finish required for top 70: two-way tie for third
Finau rounds out the trio of veterans trying to avoid the first missed postseason of their career. He has been a constant deep into the Playoffs, with 11 straight postseason appearances, including eight trips to East Lake.
That streak is in peril. Currently 89th in the FedExCup, Finau requires at least a two-way tie for third to sneak into the top 70, but he has finished no better than tied for sixth at any point this season.
