'I Care Much More About Winning The Tour Championship Than I Do Winning The Money For The Tour Championship' - Scheffler Reflects On FedEx Cup Changes

Scottie Scheffler reflected on the changes to the Tour Championship and again insisted he's more focused on the prestige of winning than the huge financial rewards

Scottie Scheffler at The Memorial Tournament
(Image credit: Getty Images)

Scottie Scheffler doesn't play golf for the money. It's something he's said time and time again and that's even the case with the huge FedEx Cup bonus on offer at the end of the season.

Reflecting on the announced changes to the Tour Championship, Scheffler says the PGA Tour is trying to make more of a spectacle of the event by removing any strokes advantage and having all players start on level par.

Despite leading the field and having that head start the last three years, World No.1 Scheffler has never been a fan of the format, and is happier with the new one.

There's a balance to be struck between rewarding the best players of the entire season, and then having a post-season scenario where anyone who has made it through can win.

As ever, though, Scheffler insisted that it's all about the creating that prestige of winning a huge event, and not about the bonus money.

"I think the way the finances are going to shake out, which I really don't like talking about because I think it's silly, but I think the way the finances are going to be is more leaning towards the reward for a great regular season and some payouts that way, versus just your performance at the Tour Championship," said Scheffler.

"Because as players that's not why we compete. I don't compete for the financial benefit at the end, I care much more about winning the Tour Championship than I do winning the money for the Tour Championship."

As the most consistent man on the PGA Tour, Scheffler has most to lose by moving away from gaining an advantage for the Tour Championship - but he's happier having it more like a Major when playing well at the right time counts.

"Look, I want to win the FedEx Cup because it's the race over the course of the whole season, you have to play great golf to finish in the top 30 for the entire season, and you got to show up at the right time and play great golf," he added.

"Like you think about the same thing when you think about our best tournaments. You think about The Players, you think about the Major championships, you have to play well at the right time, and that's just part of being in competitive sports.

Scottie Scheffler holds the FedEx Cup trophy

Scottie Scheffler won the FedEx Cup trophy in 2024

(Image credit: Getty Images)

"You look at the Patriots, they won 18 games one year and they lost the 19th and it looks like a failure for a season. Now, they had a great year, and they didn't win the Super Bowl. At the end of the day you have to perform when it matters the most.

"I think now with the format we have, we have a great format of a 72-hole golf tournament. If I want to win the FedExCup, I have to play well at the last week of the season, and it's just simple as that."

Scheffler said the PGA Tour is looking at tweaking the FedEx Cup points allocation, especially for the playoff events.

"I think right now with it being four times the amount of points that you get for winning, for instance, the Byron Nelson Championship, I don't think that that's maybe the fairest way to do it.

"So I think there's a sweet spot and a balance there with placing some emphasis on those last couple tournaments while also rewarding a body of work for the entire season."

It's all about balance for Scheffler, between rewarding those who have perfomed well all season and creating an exciting finale with everything on the line.

That may end up being financial rewards for the top 30 who make the Tour Championship and a bonus for whoever tops the standings - before they all then compete for that FedEx Cup.

"I think if we're going to have something interesting for the fans to watch at the end of the year I think there has to be some sort of balance between rewarding guys for having a great season.

"And that, whether it be 30 guys or whatever number we settle on, there's going to be a balance between rewarding guys for having a great regular season, and then giving guys an opportunity to have a great post-season, even have an opportunity to win the FedEx Cup.

"But you're not going to have an opportunity to win the FedEx Cup unless you have a really good regular season."

Paul Higham
Contributor

Paul Higham is a sports journalist with over 20 years of experience in covering most major sporting events for both Sky Sports and BBC Sport. He is currently freelance and covers the golf majors on the BBC Sport website.  Highlights over the years include covering that epic Monday finish in the Ryder Cup at Celtic Manor and watching Rory McIlroy produce one of the most dominant Major wins at the 2011 US Open at Congressional. He also writes betting previews and still feels strangely proud of backing Danny Willett when he won the Masters in 2016 - Willett also praised his putting stroke during a media event before the Open at Hoylake. Favourite interviews he's conducted have been with McIlroy, Paul McGinley, Thomas Bjorn, Rickie Fowler and the enigma that is Victor Dubuisson. A big fan of watching any golf from any tour, sadly he spends more time writing about golf than playing these days with two young children, and as a big fair weather golfer claims playing in shorts is worth at least five shots. Being from Liverpool he loves the likes of Hoylake, Birkdale and the stretch of tracks along England's Golf Coast, but would say his favourite courses played are Kingsbarns and Portrush. 

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