The FedEx Cup: Who is on the playoff bubble?

Justin Rose, Rickie Fowler among those on the outside looking into the FedEx Cup playoffs with the Wyndham Championship their last chance

The Wyndham Championship, a staple on the PGA Tour calendar since before World War II, is on the line this week in Greensboro, North Carolina, but for many of the players in the field, they’ll have a much bigger prize on their mind.

The tournament is the last chance players have to get inside the top-125 of the FedEx Cup Standings. Succeed, and your season continues to the Northern Trust next week and potentially the Tour Championship and a $15 million top prize. But come up short, and it’s time to focus on 2022.

Justin Rose is one of only nine players to appear in the FedEx Cup playoffs every year since the season-long competition was created in 2007. He was at the proverbial top of the golfing world in 2018. While Tiger Woods got the massive galleries on his way to winning the Tour Championship, it was Rose, the No. 1 player in the world at the time, who earned the $10 million as FedEx Cup champion.

Three years after that triumph, Rose is in danger of missing out on the playoffs entirely for the first time in his career. He’s currently in 138th place and needs a top-10 finish to prolong his season.

“The playoffs isn’t something you want to miss and it’s something I haven’t ever missed and it’s something that you don’t want to make a habit of,” he said on Wednesday. “From a pride point of view, I think it’s really, really important to make a run in the playoffs. The playoffs are designed to give someone an opportunity to make up for what hasn’t been a good season. But you’ve got to start, you’ve got to make the start.”

In April, Rose nearly added a second major championship to his resume, leading the Masters through two rounds before falling back to seventh place on the weekend. He also finished in the top-10 at the PGA Championship. But he has no finishes better than T20 in five events since. The 2016 Olympic gold medalist didn’t qualify to defend his title in Tokyo.

Fan-favorite Rickie Fowler is in danger of heading home

Like Rose, Rickie Fowler has also never missed the playoffs since joining the PGA Tour in 2010. His popularity hasn’t suffered even with a drop in form: he still gets the commercials, the endorsements, and the prime spots in featured pairings seemingly every week. What he hasn’t done much of recently, though, is actually contend in a PGA Tour event.

Fowler’s best finish on tour this season was T8 at the PGA Championship, a major he needed a special invite to even get into the field. It was his only top-10 over his last 35 tournaments. He doesn’t rank in the top-80 in any major statistical category other than around the greens. In 2017, when he won the Honda Classic and had another nine top-10 finishes, he was the best putter on tour; he ranks 131st this year.

Fowler is 130th in the FedEx Cup standings and needs to finish 21st or better to get into the playoffs. He’s had to endure the extreme highs and lows that come with being a professional golfer and recognizes that the spot he’s in, fighting for a spot in the playoffs, is just par for the course.

“Obviously, you have ups and downs,” Fowler said. “As soon as you feel like you have the game figured out, it will humble you very quickly. It’s an impressive group to be a part of. We’re just in the wrong spot at this time of year, so hopefully, we can kick things into gear and get ourselves tee times for next week.”

Rose and Fowler aren’t alone in facing the possibility of their season ending this week. Tommy Fleetwood, still without a win on this side of the Atlantic in 87 career starts, is 136th in the standings and needs to finish 11th or better to get into the field next week. Olympic silver medalist Rory Sabbatini needs a top-six to qualify for the playoffs.

Fleetwood has never missed the playoffs since joining the PGA Tour in 2018. Sabbatini has only missed once since 2007. They, along with Rose and Fowler, are accustomed to competing for the FedEx Cup. Now they find themselves in a position having to fight for a tee time and to keep their season, and dreams of the $15 million, alive for another week.