AFTER JUST MISSING out on success at the BMW Championship last weekend as he hunted down Wyndham Clark in the final round, Rory McIlroy heads to Atlanta this week for the season-ending, $40 million (€34.3m) Tour Championship on the PGA Tour.
Playing in the final group at Bellerive GC in St Louis alongside Clark, McIlroy started the day five back but wiped out that advantage to share the lead in the back nine. But the Masters champion played the last three holes in one-over, while Clark arrested his form to string together three late birdies and win by three shots.
McIlroy had to settle for third place, one shot behind Patrick Cantlay, but he earned $1.36 million (€1.17 million) and enjoyed an upswing in form, having finished the previous week third last in the field at the FedEx St Jude Championship, 25 shots behind winner Scottie Scheffler.
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World number two McIlroy is now 11th in the FedEx Cup standings, and will play alongside Xander Schauffele in Thursday’s opening round, teeing off 5.54pm (Irish time).
McIlroy returns to a par-70 course that sparks happy memories as he is a three-time winner at East Lake GC. He won the Tour Championship for the first time in 2016 with a play-off success, before claiming further victories in 2019 and 2022.
Rory McIlroy with Jay Monahan after his 2022 Tour Championship success. Alamy Stock Photo
Alamy Stock Photo
The Tour Championship format will unfold as a 72-hole stroke-play event for the second successive year. All 30 competing players will start the tournament at even par (the previous starting strokes format, which had seen the player with the most FedEx Cup points before the tournament starting out at 10-under, was abandoned last year.)
The winner this week will be crowned the FedEx Cup champion for 2026, earn a bonus of $10 million (€8.57 million) and receive a five-year PGA Tour exemption.
The defending champion is Tommy Fleetwood, who secured his long-awaited PGA title breakthrough 12 months ago, and he will tee off for the first round alongside Ludvig Aberg. World number one Scottie Scheffler is alongside Matt Fitzpatrick.
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What's at stake for Rory McIlroy in this week's $40m Tour Championship?
AFTER JUST MISSING out on success at the BMW Championship last weekend as he hunted down Wyndham Clark in the final round, Rory McIlroy heads to Atlanta this week for the season-ending, $40 million (€34.3m) Tour Championship on the PGA Tour.
Playing in the final group at Bellerive GC in St Louis alongside Clark, McIlroy started the day five back but wiped out that advantage to share the lead in the back nine. But the Masters champion played the last three holes in one-over, while Clark arrested his form to string together three late birdies and win by three shots.
McIlroy had to settle for third place, one shot behind Patrick Cantlay, but he earned $1.36 million (€1.17 million) and enjoyed an upswing in form, having finished the previous week third last in the field at the FedEx St Jude Championship, 25 shots behind winner Scottie Scheffler.
World number two McIlroy is now 11th in the FedEx Cup standings, and will play alongside Xander Schauffele in Thursday’s opening round, teeing off 5.54pm (Irish time).
McIlroy returns to a par-70 course that sparks happy memories as he is a three-time winner at East Lake GC. He won the Tour Championship for the first time in 2016 with a play-off success, before claiming further victories in 2019 and 2022.
The Tour Championship format will unfold as a 72-hole stroke-play event for the second successive year. All 30 competing players will start the tournament at even par (the previous starting strokes format, which had seen the player with the most FedEx Cup points before the tournament starting out at 10-under, was abandoned last year.)
The winner this week will be crowned the FedEx Cup champion for 2026, earn a bonus of $10 million (€8.57 million) and receive a five-year PGA Tour exemption.
The defending champion is Tommy Fleetwood, who secured his long-awaited PGA title breakthrough 12 months ago, and he will tee off for the first round alongside Ludvig Aberg. World number one Scottie Scheffler is alongside Matt Fitzpatrick.
Tour Championship First Round Tee Times
(Irish start times)
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Atlanta FedEx Cup Golf PGA Tour Rory McIlroy Scottie Scheffler Season Finale Tour Championship