36-581: The Charles Schwab Cup Championship is the final event of the season on the U.S.-based PGA Tour Champions , the world's leading golf tour for male professionals aged 50 and above. Played in late October or early November each year, it is PGA Tour Champions' equivalent of the PGA Tour 's Tour Championship , and was formerly known as the Senior Tour Championship . Like the Tour Championship, it has
72-627: A $ 75 million bonus fund. The runner-up gets $ 6.5 million, 3rd place $ 5 million, 4th place $ 4 million, 5th place $ 3 million, and so on down to $ 85,000 for 126th through 150th place. Beginning with the 2013 season, non-exempt players who finish 126th-150th in the FedEx Cup are given conditional PGA Tour status, but can attempt to improve their status via qualifying school. In 2007, the money was placed into their tax-deferred retirement accounts, not given in cash. Players under 45 are not able to access any 2007 FedEx Cup bonuses (as opposed to prize money earned in
108-412: A 36-hole cut. Until 2015, the season-ending Charles Schwab Cup Championship , with a limited field of 36, was played over 72 holes with no cut. Since 2016, it has been played over 54 holes with no cut. A golfer's performances can be quite variable from one round to the next, and playing an extra round increases the likelihood that the senior majors will be won by leading players. Through the 2015 season,
144-731: A series of three events over the month of August (from 2007 to 2018, the FedEx Cup Playoffs included four events). Points earned during the PGA Tour Regular Season carry over to the Playoffs. The FedEx Cup Playoffs events feature a progressive cut, with fields of 70 for FedEx St. Jude Championship , 50 for the BMW Championship and 30 for the Tour Championship held annually at East Lake Golf Club , Atlanta, Georgia , where
180-424: A single player even understands it fully." Clampett attempted to explain the process in a 2011 post on his blog. Standard tour events—apart from invitationals and majors, which have their own entry criteria—have a field of 78 (currently 81). The first 60 places in the field are filled as follows: This leaves 18 places: The following players have won more than one money list title through 2023: The table shows
216-415: A small field (30 from 1990 through 2015, and 36 from 2016 forward) and no half-way cut. Through 2015, the top 30 money winners made up the field. Since 2016, 36 golfers have competed, and the event is the final stage of a three-tournament playoff similar to that used by the regular PGA Tour for its FedEx Cup . Through 2015, the tournament had another distinction that made it unique on PGA Tour Champions – it
252-561: A strokes-based system (FedEx Cup Starting Strokes) instituted for the first time in 2019. The FedEx Cup points leader after the first two Playoffs events begins the Tour Championship at 10-under par. The No. 2 player will start at 8 under. The No. 3 player starts at 7 under; the No. 4 player starts at 6 under; the No. 5 player starts at 5 under. Players 6–10 start at 4 under; players 11–15 start at 3 under; players 16–20 start at 2 under; players 21–25 start at 1 under; and players 26–30 start at even par. At
288-480: A three-year exemption. Winners of other playoff events receive only the standard 2-year exemption. Since 2013, the FedEx Cup standings have been the primary means of determining exemption status for the following year; the 125 players who qualify for the playoffs are fully exempt. Players who finish 126th through 150th, if not exempt through other means such as a recent tournament win, retain conditional status; these, along with finishers 151 through 200, are eligible for
324-421: Is also crowned FedEx Cup champion. The Tour Championship win is considered an official victory and the FedEx Cup champion also earns a bonus of $ 18 million and a five-year PGA Tour exemption. If an eligible player skips a playoff event, no alternates are added and the field is reduced accordingly. As of 2022, the player with the most points after the Tour Championship wins the FedEx Cup itself and $ 18 million of
360-465: The 2007 tour offered a total of $ 55.2 million over 29 events. Most of the tournaments are played over three rounds (54 holes), which is one round fewer than regular professional stroke play tournaments on the PGA Tour. Because of this and having smaller fields (81 golfers), there are generally no "cuts" between any of the rounds. However, the five senior majors have a full 72 holes (four rounds) with
396-610: The Charles Schwab Cup was a season-long points race. Points were given to players who finished in the top 10. One point was earned for each $ 1,000 won (i.e. $ 500,000 = 500 points) with majors counting double. From the Cup's inception in 1990 through 2015, the top 30 players competed in the Charles Schwab Cup Championship, which was contested over four rounds and where all contestants earned points. The top five finishers in
SECTION 10
#1733084858783432-669: The Dominican Republic , the Senior Open Championship in Scotland and tournaments in Canada and South Korea . The guaranteed minimum official prize money is $ 51.5 million over 26 tournaments, with a record average purse of $ 1.98 million per event; slightly higher than the 2008 prize money of $ 51.4 million over the same number of events. The total prize money and number of events, however, are down from previous years—for example,
468-524: The Korn Ferry Tour Finals , through which they may regain their cards if not already exempt. Before 2013, the money list rather than the FedEx Cup standings determined exemption status. Since the money and point distributions were different and the money list was not finalized until after the Fall Series , it was common for players to qualify for the playoffs and still lose their card at the end of
504-703: The Senior PGA Tour and the Champions Tour ) is a men's professional senior golf tour , open to golfers age 50 and over, administered as a branch of the PGA Tour . The Senior PGA Championship , founded in 1937, was for many years the only high-profile tournament for golfers over 50. The idea for a senior tour grew out of a highly successful event in 1978, the Legends of Golf at Onion Creek Club in Austin, Texas , which featured competition between two-member teams of some of
540-568: The FedEx Cup Champion is determined. In the event an eligible player is unable or chooses not to play, the field is shortened and no alternates are added. Points from the missing positions are not awarded. The FedEx St. Jude Championship, the BMW Championship and Tour Championship are no-cut events. The first two Playoffs events award 2,000 points to the winner (quadruple points of Regular Season events). The Tour Championship features
576-473: The FedEx Cup Playoffs finale, the Tour Championship , instituted a strokes-based system, FedEx Cup Starting Strokes. In 2022, the FedEx Cup bonus pool purse increased to $ 75 million, with the winner's share coming in at $ 18,000,000. At the conclusion of the regular season (after the Wyndham Championship ), the top 70 players in the FedEx Cup standings become eligible to play in the FedEx Cup Playoffs,
612-400: The No. 4 player starts at 6 under; the No. 5 player starts at 5 under. Players 6–10 start at 4 under; players 11–15 start at 3 under; players 16–20 start at 2 under; players 21–25 start at 1 under; and players 26–30 start at even par. At the Tour Championship, the player with the lowest aggregate score over 72 holes when combined with his FedEx Cup Starting Strokes wins the Tour Championship and
648-452: The PGA Tour in mid-season is eligible to earn points in the first event he plays after officially joining the Tour. At the end of the regular season, the top 70 players participate in the playoffs. The number of points awarded for winning each playoff event is 2000, which is four times the amount awarded for a typical regular season tournament. Points won in playoff events are added to those for
684-421: The Tour Championship, the player with the lowest aggregate score over 72 holes when combined with his FedEx Cup Starting Strokes wins the Tour Championship and is also crowned FedEx Cup champion. The Tour Championship win is considered an official victory and the FedEx Cup champion also earns a bonus of $ 25 million and a five-year PGA Tour exemption. The season structure changed beginning in the fall of 2013, but
720-526: The final Regular Season FedEx Cup standings. This recognized the 10 players who earn the most FedEx Cup points through the Wyndham Championship , with the Regular Season champion earning $ 2 million. Beginning in 2021, the Regular Season bonus pool became sponsored by Comcast Business . As of 2022, the Regular Season Bonus Pool was $ 20 million with the champion earning $ 4 million. Also in 2019,
756-549: The final event. In 2006 , the Champions Tour Division Board of the PGA Tour organization voted to allow players the option to use golf carts during most events on the tour. The five major championships and certain other events, including pro-ams, are excluded. Current PGA Tour Champions competitor and TV golf analyst Bobby Clampett has called the process for determining the field in tour events "the most complicated system known to man," and added that "[n]ot
SECTION 20
#1733084858783792-548: The first time that men's professional golf had a playoff system. Since its inception, the competition has been sponsored by FedEx . In 2022, the PGA Tour added the FedEx St. Jude Championship to the tournament, expanding the partnership with St. Jude Children's Research Hospital as the tournament's designated charity. The FedEx Cup is a season long competition. Points are awarded based on finishing position in all PGA Tour sanctioned tournaments. The leading points earners throughout
828-537: The greatest older golfers of that day. The tour was formally established in 1980 and was originally known as the Senior PGA Tour until October 2002 . The tour was then renamed the Champions Tour through the 2015 season , after which the current name of "PGA Tour Champions" was adopted. Of the 26 tournaments on the 2010 schedule, all were in the United States except for the Cap Cana Championship in
864-708: The points race earned annuities. In 2016, the format of the Charles Schwab Cup was radically changed to a playoff-style format similar to that used for the FedEx Cup on the main PGA Tour. Qualification for the playoffs is now based on money earned during the PGA Tour Champions season. The top 72 players on the money list automatically qualify for the first playoff event, the PowerShares QQQ Championship. Additionally, if one or more golfers finish in
900-544: The qualifying criteria have not changed since 2009. The first part of the season is known as the "regular season" starting in January, culminating in three events called the "playoffs" in August. Players earn points in each event they play. For all regular-season PGA Tour events, 500 FedEx Cup points are awarded to the winner, with points also being earned by every player making the cut. In "signature events", 700 FedEx Cup points go to
936-435: The regular season qualify for the playoffs. Players are further eliminated after each of the first two playoff events, with the leading 30 points earners qualifying for the Tour Championship . Scottie Scheffler is the current champion, after he won the Tour Championship in 2024. Rory McIlroy has the most titles with three. The only other player to win multiple FedEx Cups is Tiger Woods , with two. The PGA Tour adjusted
972-406: The regular season, and the fields are reduced as the playoffs proceed. Since 2013 the top 125 on the FedEx Cup points list also retain their tour cards for the following season. After the second playoff event, as of 2019, the FedEx Cup points leader after the first two playoff events begins the Tour Championship at 10-under par. The No. 2 player starts at 8 under. The No. 3 player starts at 7 under;
1008-507: The rules around the FedEx Cup in each of the two years after its introduction in 2007. Each set of changes was introduced to address issues that arose the previous year, particularly with the playoffs portion of the FedEx Cup: In 2019, the total bonus pool was increased by $ 25 million to $ 70 million, with the FedEx Cup champion earning $ 15 million. Among that $ 70 million was a $ 10 million Regular Season bonus pool, sponsored by Wyndham, tied to
1044-423: The top 10 are still paid solely into the players' retirement accounts. The winner of the FedEx Cup also receives a five-year exemption on the PGA Tour, mirroring the exemption that was given to the tour's leading money winner prior to 2017. Before the change in format in 2019 that made it impossible for the FedEx Cup and the Tour Championship to be won by two different players, the Tour Championship winner received
1080-610: The top 10 in the final non-playoff event, the SAS Championship, and are not in the top 72 on the money list entering the playoffs, the highest such finisher in the SAS Championship will also receive a playoff place. The playoffs operate on a points system, with each qualifying player receiving a points total equal to the money earned on the season. Points during the first two playoff events, the QQQ Championship and Dominion Charity Classic, are also based on money earned, except that
1116-446: The top ten career money leaders on PGA Tour Champions through the 2023 season. Source: The PGA Tour also publishes a list of PGA Tour Champions players' total career earnings on its three main tours. The top player on that list after the 2023 season is Phil Mickelson , who has won a combined career total of $ 98,087,853. FedEx Cup The FedEx Cup is the championship trophy for the PGA Tour . Its introduction in 2007 marked
Charles Schwab Cup Championship - Misplaced Pages Continue
1152-401: The tournaments themselves) until turning 45. They can invest their bonus in any manner they choose, and once they turn 45, can choose to defer payment until they turn 60 or play in fewer than 15 PGA Tour events in a season. Once a player chooses to take payments from his fund, he will receive monthly checks for five years. Because of possible legislation affecting deferred retirement plans, in
1188-465: The wake of business stories that speculated that Tiger Woods could amass a $ 1 billion retirement fund if he won the FedEx Cup six more times, the PGA Tour announced a change to the payout system effective in 2008. The top 10 finishers now receive the bulk of their FedEx Cup bonuses in cash up front; for example, the 2008 FedEx Cup champion received $ 9 million up front and $ 1 million in his tax-deferred retirement account. FedEx Cup bonuses to finishers below
1224-489: The winner of each of those events receives double points. The playoff field is cut to 54 for the Dominion Charity Classic, and finally to 36 for the Charles Schwab Cup Championship. After the Dominion Charity Classic, the field's points are reset so that each of the remaining 36 players can theoretically win the Charles Schwab Cup, and that each of the top five players can clinch the Charles Schwab Cup by winning
1260-461: The winner, while 750 points are given to the champion of the four majors and the Players. Lastly, 300 points are given to the winner of any event played in the same week as a major or signature event. The goal is to be among the top 70 points leaders following the final event of the regular season. Only those players who are regular full-time members of the PGA Tour earn points. A non-member who joins
1296-453: Was the only event, other than the tour's five majors , contested over four rounds. In 2016 and 2017, it returned to being held over three rounds. In 2018, it returns to being held over four rounds. Since 2013, the purse has been $ 2,500,000, with $ 440,000 going to the winner. 33°28′54″N 112°03′49″W / 33.4816°N 112.0636°W / 33.4816; -112.0636 PGA Tour Champions PGA Tour Champions (formerly
#782217