PGA FedEx Cup Watch – Tiger Woods Back in the Lead

Tiger Woods put to rest some of the concerns that many had about his finishing power after he “lost” the Deutche Bank and Barclays after proverbial meltdowns. His eight-stroke victory at the BMW Championship should cement the hopes he has of claiming his second FedEx Cup in three seasons. It should also cause my mother, Tiger Woods’ biggest fan, to have a reason to smile again after two weeks of depression.

When Woods bent a shot from around a tree to lay up for a birdie on the ninth, it was just another highlight hallmark for the sports greatest champion. While the announcers went ballistic, and the crowd erupted, Woods acted like it was common place. In a month where he has struggled to find his putting game, and failed to drive the fairways with the ferocity he is renowned for, Woods found exactly what we’ve been missing from him all season: greatness.

Cog Hill put Steve Stricker to bed early on, but also saw the surprising return of Marc Leishman, Jim Furyk and Sean O’Hair to the top of the leader board. The biggest surprise is the loopy-swinging Furyk, who has catapulted to third in the FedEx Cup standings and has an outside chance of dethroning Woods by winning next week at the Tour Championship.

Zach Johnson, who finished fifth overall at 9-under, will enter the Tour Championship as the fourth ranked player. Stricker, who is the second seed in the FedEx standings, will get a shot at greatness and redemption this weekend. Heath Slocum rounds out the top-5.

The points system for the Tour Championship essentially reset completely, giving everyone in the top-5 a serious chance at winning the FedEx Cup. It really does come down to this weekend, with players lobbying for position in the opening three tournaments. Woods will enter the Tour Championship as the number-one seed, giving him 2,500 points, while Stricker will follow as the second seed with 2,250. Basically, whoever sits atop the leader board after the conclusion of the Tour Championship will be the winner of the esteemed FedEx Cup and its $10 million purse.

Woods enters the weekend as the favorite, yet again, and momentum is behind. But if we’ve learned anything from this year’s PGA betting season, it’s that anything can happen. At the Tour Championship, it’s more difficult to put your money where your mouth is than it ever has been. How confident do you feel in Tiger at the Tour Championship?

I wouldn’t doubt him, but we’re also talking about the guy who gave up a lead at The Barclays and disappeared off the map at the Deutche. I don’t care how good he is, his got some serious contenders chasing him this weekend. When we get to East Lake, the world will be watching to see if Tiger can put himself within one win of Jack Nicklaus on the all-time list, and put the field where it belongs: behind him.