As PGA playoffs near, players with SC connections are safely in or have work to do
The truncated PGA Tour schedule has entered the home stretch, and most in the South Carolina contingent need a strong finishing kick to earn a berth in the Tour Championship.
Indeed, less than half of the players with state connections are safely in the playoffs that lead to the FedEx Cup and only one, Dustin Johnson, is in the top 30 — the number required to qualify to compete for the big prize.
Only three weeks remain after the 3M Championship ends Sunday before the three-tournament playoffs begin with the top 125 in season-long FedEx points making the opener. The top 70 afterward move on to the second event before the field is reduced to 30 for the finale in Atlanta.
There’s no middle ground for the Palmetto State representatives in the waning days of the season. They are either “in” the first event or have work to do. No one is on the maybe-maybe-not “bubble.”
Based on FedEx points headed into the 3M tourney, the secure list for the playoffs is led by Johnson, the world’s fourth-ranked player at No. 25; and Kevin Kisner, 37th in the world ranking and 52nd in points. Matthew NeSmith (No. 74 in points), Doc Redman (76), Scott Brown (89), Lucas Glover (92) and Russell Henley (109) can make post-season plans, too.
On the outside looking in are Kyle Stanley (133), D.J. Trahan (148), Mike Anderson (152), Ben Martin (153), Wesley Bryan (195), Jonathan Byrd (197), Bill Haas (204), Tommy Gainey (223) and William McGirt (237).
Limited status or injuries play an obvious role for some on the “work-to-do” list. Both Bryan (three tournaments) and McGirt (one) are coming off surgeries, and Byrd, Gainey and Martin have combined for only 22 starts.
On the plus side, one outstanding performance can send a player racing up the standings. A “Doc Redman tournament” can turn a season around.
Redman? Yes, a year ago, the former Clemson star had toiled on the third-tier Mackenzie Tour in Canada most of the year. He got into the Rocket Mortgage event via Monday qualifying, then sizzled in the main event and placed second.
From nowhere and no status, he took a giant leap toward earning full playing privileges this year and he is safely in this season’s playoffs.
Those on the outside looking in will not make the World Golf Championship St. Jude tournament in Memphis or the PGA Championship in San Francisco. That leaves opportunities only next week in Reno, which does not offer full FedEx points since it is opposite the WGC event, and perhaps in the season finale in Greensboro.
To make up for lost playing opportunities due to tournaments canceled by the coronavirus outbreak, the Tour changed eligibility rules for the 2020-21 season. If players do not improve their status this year, they will keep their 2019-20 ranking.
For now, though, the race toward the playoffs initially and eventually the Tour Championship takes center stage, and opportunities are dwindling.
Chip shots. The SCGA’s One-Day Series events have been suspended through Aug. 31 for the safety of participants and on-site directors. Officials hope to resume the tournaments in September. ... Berkeley Hall Club in Bluffton, which had been scheduled to play host to the cancelled 2020 U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur, will stage the 2021 event, the USGA announced. . . . Major Lenning (Simpsonville) won the boys’ title and Camila Burnett (Bluffton) took the girls’ championship at the SCJGA’s Jimmy Self Invitational at Palmetto Dunes’ Arthur Hills Course on Hilton Head Island. ... The PlayMyrtleBeach.com World Amateur Handicap Championship, with more than 2,000 players already entered, will be played as scheduled Aug. 31-Sept. 4 with multiple changes made to help ensure the safety of players. Go online to www.MyrtleBeachWorldAmateur.com for details. ... Hyo Joon Jang (Bluffton) shattered the tournament record en route to winning the CGA’s Carolinas Junior Girls’ title by 13 strokes at the CC of Asheville.