2008 PGA Tour Season
2008 Fed Ex Cup Playoffs
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1 .. Pre-2008 Tour Championship Leaders
Going into the 2008 Tour Championship. Vijay Singh had all but clinched the Fed Ex Cup title. All he had to do was officially complete 72 holes of the Tour Championship at Atlanta's East Lake GC on September 25-28. The only possible way Singh could lose the Fed Ex Cup was if he either withdrew from the Tour Championship, or if he suffered a disqualification during the tournament. If one of these things had happened, then #2 Camilo Villegas and #3 Sergio Garcia would have been the only ones in the Final Top 30 with a mathematical chance under the actual playoff set-up to overtake Singh and claim the Fed Ex Cup, provided that one of them won the Tour Championship. Of course, Singh played the event without incident, finishing in a 4-way tie for 22nd, and claimed the Fed Ex Cup. Meanwhile, Villegas and Garcia actually wound up tied for for first at the end of 72 holes. Villegas then beat Garcia in a sudden-death playoff and claimed the Tour Championship title. The difference between #1 Singh and #30 C. Campbell is 19,839 points. Singh is 10,601 points ahead of #2 Villegas, 11,751 points ahead of #3 Garcia, 13,521 points ahead of #4 Furyk, and 13,583 points ahead of #5 Weir. Full Top 30 Fed Ex Cup leaderboard going into the 2008 Tour Championship .....
Actual Actual
Rank Player Points Rank Player Points
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1 Vijay Singh 122,651 16 Hunter Mahan 105,149
2 Camilo Villegas 112,050 17 Carl Pettersson 104,794
3 Sergio Garcia 110,900 18 Robert Allenby 104,601
4 Jim Furyk 109,130 19 Trevor Immelman 104,528
5 Mike Weir 109,068 20 Stuart Appleby 104,525
6 Anthony Kim 108,919 21 Ernie Els 104,425
7 Justin Leonard 108,138 22 Ken Duke 104,232
8 K.J. Choi 106,846 23 Tim Clark 103,895
9 Phil Mickelson 106,701 24 Briny Baird 103,534
10 Ben Curtis 106,202 25 D.J. Trahan 103,453
11 Kevin Sutherland 106,178 26 Ryuji Imada 103,353
12 Steve Stricker 106,156 27 Andres Romero 103,303
13 Kenny Perry 105,865 28 Billy Mayfair 103,189
14 Dudley Hart 105,431 29 Bubba Watson 103,003
15 Stewart Cink 105,182 30 Chad Campbell 102,812
2 .. Pre-2008 Tour Championship
Actual and Alternative Fed Ex Cup Points The actual points distribution used (a total of 110,000 pts) for the 2008 Tour Championship was as follows .... 1 .. 12,500 6 .. 4,200 11 .. 3,600 16 .. 3,100 21 .. 2,600 26 .. 2,150 2 .. 8,500 7 .. 4,050 12 .. 3,500 17 .. 3,000 22 .. 2,500 27 .. 2,100 3 .. 6,000 8 .. 3,900 13 .. 3,400 18 .. 2,900 23 .. 2,400 28 .. 2,050 4 .. 5,000 9 .. 3,800 14 .. 3,300 19 .. 2,800 24 .. 2,300 29 .. 2,025 5 .. 4,500 10 .. 3,700 15 .. 3,200 20 .. 2,700 25 .. 2,225 30 .. 2,000
It is easy to see the problems created by the actual Tour Championship points distribution, pre-determined
and approved at least nine months before the start of the 2008 FedX playoffs !!, and with no special policy in place that would allow for a customized adjustment to handle unusually large playoff leads. So, Vijay Singh, with two playoff wins that awarded more than twice as many points as one would get in regular events, was virtually assured of the Fed Ex Cup title even before play began at the 2008 Tour Championship. If a special custom adjustment policy had been in place, then the Tour Championship points distribution could have been adjusted prior to the start of play, allowing all 30 participants a more than fair chance to win not only the tournament but also the Fed Ex Cup Title as well. For 2008, an alternative points distribution method, which offers a total of 200,000 pts, calculated, approved and announced on the Monday before play in the Tour Championship begins, is as follows .... 1.. 32,000 6.. 8,000 11.. 6,000 16.. 4,320 21.. 3,920 26.. 3,520 2.. 17,600 7.. 7,600 12.. 5,600 17.. 4,240 22.. 3,840 27.. 3,440 3.. 12,800 8.. 7,200 13.. 5,200 18.. 4,160 23.. 3,760 28.. 3,360 4.. 10,400 9.. 6,800 14.. 4,800 19.. 4,080 24.. 3,680 29.. 3,280 5.. 8,800 10.. 6,400 15.. 4,400 20.. 4,000 25.. 3,600 30.. 3,200With the alternative points distribution in effect, a few of the potential scenarios it creates are as follows .... »» Players #1 thru #6 ... JUST WIN, BABY !! »» Players #7 thru #8 Combination of winning Tour Championship (32,000 pts) -AND- Vijay Singh finishing no better than a two-way tie for 2nd (15,200 pts) »» Players #9 thru #21 Combination of winning Tour Championship (32,000 pts) -AND- Vijay Singh finishing no better than a three-way tie for 2nd (13,600 pts) »» Player #22 thru 30 Combination of winning Tour Championship (32,000 pts) -AND- Vijay Singh finishing no better than a two-way tie for 3rd (11,200 pts)
The customized alternative Tour Championship points makes the 2008 Fed Ex Cup winning scenarios less complex
and easier to understand. Using the alternative points also makes it clear that Vijay Singh and the other leading players can't just sleepwalk through 72 holes. They have to play strong, steady, near flawless golf in order to hold off the entire field of 30, who in turn would surely be inspired to play their best. Now, on to the actual 2008 Tour Championship results, which will include the alternative points distribution and the various potential scenarios which have been created by such points. |
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3 .. The 2008 Tour Championship ....
Actual results, plus alternative points
Sure enough, while Vijay Singh just eased his way thru the tournament and finished tied-22nd, his closest wanna-be-but-never-would-be pursuers (in "actual" mode) Camilo Villegas and Sergio Garcia battled well into sudden-death for the Tour Championship title, with Villegas the winner and Garcia the runner-up. See the next section for actual and alternative Fed Ex Final 30 outcomes. PURSE: $ 7,000,000 1st Prize: $ 1,260,000 No-Cut Field of 30 30 of 30 finishers Player Finish Scores Tournament FX Points -- -- -- Money Actual Alternative --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Camilo Villegas WINNER 72, 66, 69, 66 = 273 $ 1,260,000 12,500 32,000 NOTE .. Villegas won a sudden-death playoff over Garcia. Sergio Garcia 2 70, 65, 67, 71 = 273 $ 756,000 8,500 19,800 Anthony Kim T3 64, 69, 72, 69 = 274 $ 409,500 5,500 11,600 Phil Mickelson T3 68, 68, 69, 69 = 274 $ 409,500 5,500 11,600 Ben Curtis 5 71, 69, 68, 70 = 278 $ 280,000 4,500 8,800 Ernie Els T6 68, 73, 70, 69 = 280 $ 238,000 4,050 7,600 Jim Furyk T6 72, 70, 69, 69 = 280 $ 238,000 4,050 7,600 Mike Weir T6 70, 69, 71, 70 = 280 $ 238,000 4,050 7,600 K.J. Choi 9 69, 70, 70, 72 = 281 $ 210,000 3,800 6,800 Stuart Appleby T10 72, 71, 70, 69 = 282 $ 180,040 3,500 5,600 Dudley Hart T10 73, 69, 71, 69 = 282 $ 180,040 3,500 5,600 Trevor Immelman T10 68, 73, 71, 70 = 282 $ 180,040 3,500 5,600 Justin Leonard T10 73, 69, 73, 67 = 282 $ 180,040 3,500 5,600 Billy Mayfair T10 72, 71, 69, 70 = 282 $ 180,040 3,500 5,600 Kevin Sutherland 15 71, 71, 69, 72 = 283 $ 154,000 3,200 4,400 Robert Allenby 16 75, 66, 67, 76 = 284 $ 148,400 3,100 4,320 Ken Duke T17 77, 69, 69, 71 = 286 $ 138,600 2,850 4,120 Ryuji Imada T17 75, 72, 71, 68 = 286 $ 138,600 2,850 4,120 Hunter Mahan T17 74, 75, 68, 69 = 286 $ 138,600 2,850 4,120 D.J. Trahan T17 71, 72, 71, 72 = 286 $ 138,600 2,850 4,120 Carl Pettersson 21 76, 72, 71, 68 = 287 $ 131,600 2,600 3,920 Chad Campbell T22 72, 73, 75, 69 = 289 $ 127,400 2,450 3,800 Vijay Singh T22 73, 74, 72, 70 = 289 $ 127,400 2,450 3,800 Stewart Cink T24 75, 73, 73, 69 = 290 $ 120,400 2,225 3,600 Kenny Perry T24 76, 75, 67, 72 = 290 $ 120,400 2,225 3,600 Steve Stricker T24 74, 74, 70, 72 = 290 $ 120,400 2,225 3,600 Briny Baird T27 74, 71, 70, 76 = 291 $ 115,500 2,075 3,400 Andres Romero T27 73, 68, 78, 72 = 291 $ 115,500 2,075 3,400 Tim Clark 29 78, 74, 71, 69 = 292 $ 113,400 2,025 3,280 Bubba Watson 30 71, 74, 74, 76 = 295 $ 112,000 2,000 3,200
4 .. Final 2008 Fed Ex Cup Top 30 Standings
-- Actual and Alternative
In "actual" mode, Vijay Singh edged out Camilo Villegas for the Fed Ex Cup title -- by only 601 points!! The Tour Championship runner-up Sergio Garcia finished 3rd, 5,701 pts behind Singh. If Garcia had won the tournament, then he would have been the "actual" 2nd place Fed Ex finisher, 1,701 pts behind Singh. In "alternative" mode, we have a much different final Fed Ex Cup outcome -- Villegas 1st, Garcia 2nd and Singh 3rd. Of secondary importance is Phil Mickelson's going from #7 "actual" to #5 "alternative". It should also be noted that a Garcia playoff win would have reversed his and Villegas' positions in both "actual" and "alternative" modes. Anthony Kim finished #4 in both modes. Both he and Mickelson tied for 3rd in the Tour Championship, each one stroke short of joining Villegas and Garcia in the playoff! Imagine that -- potentially four players could have been battling, at least in "alternative" mode, for both the tournament and the Fed Ex Cup Title. However, a scenario like that was not to be realized, mainly because an alternative points distribution was never used, or even considered!!! -- Actual -- Alternative Fed Ex Cup Rank Player Points Rank Player Points Bonus Money ------------------------------- -------------------------------- ------------ 1 Vijay Singh 125,101 1 Camilo Villegas 144,050 $ 10,000,000 2 Camilo Villegas 124,550 2 Sergio Garcia 130,700 $ 3,000,000 3 Sergio Garcia 119,400 3 Vijay Singh 126,651 $ 2,000,000 4 Anthony Kim 114,419 4 Anthony Kim 120,419 $ 1,500,000 5 Jim Furyk 113,180 5 Phil Mickelson 118,301 $ 1,000,000 6 Mike Weir 113,118 6 Jim Furyk 116,730 $ 800,000 7 Phil Mickelson 112,201 7 Mike Weir 116,668 $ 700,000 8 Justin Leonard 111,638 8 Ben Curtis 115,002 $ 600,000 9 Ben Curtis 110,702 9 Justin Leonard 113,738 $ 550,000 10 K.J. Choi 110,646 10 K.J. Choi 113,446 $ 500,000 11 Kevin Sutherland 109,378 11 Ernie Els 112,025 $ 300,000 12 Dudley Hart 108,931 12 Dudley Hart 111,031 $ 290,000 13 Steve Stricker 108,381 13 Kevin Sutherland 110,578 $ 280,000 14 Kenny Perry 108,090 14 Trevor Immelman 110,128 $ 270,000 15 Ernie Els 108,050 15 Stuart Appleby 110,125 $ 250,000 16 Trevor Immelman 108,028 16 Steve Stricker 109,756 $ 245,000 17 Stuart Appleby 108,025 17 Kenny Perry 109,465 $ 240,000 18 Hunter Mahan 107,999 18 Hunter Mahan 109,269 $ 235,000 19 Robert Allenby 107,701 19 Robert Allenby 108,921 $ 230,000 20 Stewart Cink 107,407 20 Billy Mayfair 108,789 $ 225,000 21 Carl Pettersson 107,394 21 Stewart Cink 108,782 $ 220,000 22 Ken Duke 107,082 22 Carl Pettersson 108,714 $ 215,000 23 Billy Mayfair 106,689 23 Ken Duke 108,352 $ 210,000 24 D.J. Trahan 106,303 24 Briny Baird 107,934 $ 205,000 25 Ryuji Imada 106,203 25 D.J. Trahan 107,573 $ 200,000 26 Tim Clark 105,945 26 Ryuji Imada 107,473 $ 195,000 27 Briny Baird 105,609 27 Tim Clark 107,175 $ 190,000 28 Andres Romero 105,378 28 Andres Romero 106,703 $ 185,000 29 Chad Campbell 105,262 29 Chad Campbell 106,612 $ 180,000 30 Bubba Watson 105,003 30 Bubba Watson 106,203 $ 175,000
5. "Very Alternative" 2008 Tour Championship Sudden-Death Playoff Outcomes
As mentioned in the previous section, Phil Mickelson and Anthony Kim each came up one stroke short of joining Camilo Villegas and Sergio Garcia in the playoff for the Tour Championship title. What follows is a supposing of outcomes that could have occurred if -BOTH- Mickelson and Kim had managed to shave off one more stroke and join the playoff. NOTE All supposings presented below assume nothing else changes beyond the results of just the sudden-death playoff. Also, only places #1 thru #7 on either the actual or alternative lists are affected. _______________________________________________________________ Scenario A -- Phil Mickelson wins Tour Championship Actual Mode Alternative Mode Rank Player FX Pts Rank Player FX Pts FX Bonus $$$ --------------------------- --------------------------- ------------ 1. Singh 125,101 1. Mickelson ** 138,701 $ 10,000,000 2. Mickelson ** 119,201 2. Villegas 125,650 $ 3,000,000 3. Villegas 118,550 3. Singh 122,651 $ 2,000,000 4. Garcia 117,400 4. Garcia 124,500 $ 1,500,000 5. Kim 116,419 5. Kim 122,519 $ 1,000,000 6. Furyk 113,180 6. Furyk 116,730 $ 800,000 7. Weir 113,118 7. Weir 116,668 $ 700,000 ___________________________________________________________ Scenario B -- Anthony Kim wins Tour Championship Actual Mode Alternative Mode Rank Player FX Pts Rank Player FX Pts FX Bonus $$$ --------------------------- --------------------------- ------------ 1. Singh 125,101 1. Kim ** 140,919 $ 10,000,000 2. Kim ** 121,419 2. Villegas 125,650 $ 3,000,000 3. Villegas 118,550 3. Singh 122,651 $ 2,000,000 4. Garcia 117,400 4. Garcia 124,500 $ 1,500,000 5. Mickelson 113,201 5. Mickelson 120,301 $ 1,000,000 6. Furyk 113,180 6. Furyk 116,730 $ 800,000 7. Weir 113,118 7. Weir 116,668 $ 700,000 |
2008 Fed Ex Cup Playoffs