2013 Tour Championship Preview

The biggest individual cash prize in sports.

That is what awaits the winner of the overall points for the Fed Ex Cup. Whoever wins the Tour Championship will most likely win the Fed Ex Cup, but that isn't for certain.

Right now, the leaders of the Fed Ex Cup are:
1. Tiger Woods (points 4,352)
2. Henrik Stenson (points 4,229)
3. Adam Scott (points 4,122)
4. Zach Johnson (points 3,843)
5. Matt Kuchar (points 3,330)

The scenario. If any of these players win the championship, they win the Fed Ex Cup. Now the numbers might not prove it, but if any of the top five points leaders win the Tour Championship, they take it all.

To get to this point, you will of had to finish in the top 30 in the point standings. These players have gone through the first three of the four playoff events to get here. The first playoff event (the Barclays) cut from the top 125 to 100. Then the next (the Deutsche Bank), 100 to 70. Then finally (the BMW), 70 to 30. Some of the notable players that didn't make it this far are Bubba Watson (finished 37), Rickie Fowler (38), former world number one's Lee Westwood (41) and Rory McIlroy (50), and Ryder Cup sensation Ian Poulter (53).

Some of the notables that squeaked into the top 30 are Dustin Johnson (30), former world number one Luke Donald (29), and Sergio Garcia (25). These players will need to win the event, and have a bit of luck that the top players in the standings don't have a high finish in the tournament.

The people outside the top five that I believe have the best chances of winning are British Open Champion Phil Mickelson, who sits at eighth in the points standings.

Also the U.S. Open Champion Justin Rose, Rose overtook Mickelson down the final stretch of the U.S. Open. Rose sits in ninth place right now in the points standings.

And finally, the 20 year old sensation, Jordan Spieth. Spieth is tied for second in the field for most top 10 finishes. The 20 year old broke through this year, in the John Deere Classic with a playoff win over the hometown boy Zach Johnson, and David Hearn in a playoff after holing a bunker shot on his last hole for birdie. Spieth will also play in this years Presidents Cup, due to being a captains pick.

The 2013 Tour championship is currently underway, and it will be interesting to see how this plays out, and there will certainly be a lot of math done this weekend.

For points standings go to: http://www.pgatour.com/stats/stat.02395.html