By James O’Donnell
ATLANTA — I’ll admit it: I wasn’t sure what to expect when the PGA TOUR scrapped Starting Strokes for this year’s TOUR Championship.
After years of watching players arrive at East Lake with different scores based on their FedExCup standings, the TOUR went back to something much simpler.
Thirty players. Four rounds. Everybody starts even. Lowest score wins.
And after watching this tournament unfold, I’m convinced the PGA TOUR got it right.
Not because it’s perfect. It isn’t. The FedExCup is supposed to reward an entire season of work, and there is a legitimate argument that the top performers should receive an advantage.
But there’s something refreshing about getting to East Lake and just playing golf.
Let the Majors Be the Majors
The Masters is the Masters.
The U.S. Open is the U.S. Open.
Those tournaments have their history, traditions and identities. The FedExCup doesn’t need to pretend it’s another major.
It can be its own thing.
East Lake can be the big season-ending show.
This year’s format made the tournament incredibly easy to follow. Russell Henley shoots 61? He leads. Tommy Fleetwood and Patrick Cantlay make birdies? They climb. Scottie Scheffler falls back? You can see it immediately.
The TOUR Actually Listened
Give the PGA TOUR some credit here.
They heard the criticism. They listened to fans and players who wanted a simpler, more intuitive championship, and they were willing to change one of the biggest events on their schedule.
That doesn’t mean the new format will be permanent.
It doesn’t have to be.
Sports leagues should be allowed to experiment.
After 54 holes, Fleetwood and Cantlay were tied at 16-under, Henley was two shots back, Keegan Bradley was three behind and Scheffler was still lurking.
And nobody had to explain why the guy sitting five shots behind was somehow leading the FedExCup.
East Lake Does Its Part
The golf course deserves credit, too.
East Lake has history pouring out of it, but it doesn’t feel like a museum. It feels like a tournament venue.
The fans are close to the action. The media experience is strong. The course provides birdie opportunities while still punishing mistakes.
Most importantly, it lets the players create the drama.
That’s exactly what you want.
Could the TOUR Championship rotate someday?
Sure.
But I wouldn’t be in a hurry to move it.
A Pretty Good Ending
And the timing works.
The TOUR Championship doesn’t have to carry golf’s entire identity on its back. The majors remain the majors, and soon enough the sport shifts toward the Ryder Cup or Presidents Cup and a completely different kind of competition.
That’s what makes East Lake fun.
It is the final act of the individual PGA TOUR season.
