2021 The Northern Trust and FedEx Cup Playoffs Preview

2020 FedEx Cup Champion Dustin Johnson is one of our picks to win The Northern Trust (Image: PGA Tour)
 

 

Its the time of the year that PGA Tour players and their fans have been waiting for, the start of the 2021 FedEx Cup Playoffs, the nearly-month long race to crown the FedEx Cup Champion. 

 

The top 125 players in the FedEx Cup rankings flock this week to Liberty National Golf Club in Jersey City, New Jersey for the The Northern Trust. The field is packed with talent, many want to get ahead in the rankings this week and will push hard for a good finish or even a win this week.

 

 

HOW THE FEDEX CUP PLAYOFFS WORK

The Playoffs consist of three events: The Northern Trust, which hosts the Top 125 players in the rankings, the BMW Championship, which hosts the Top 70 and finally the Tour Championship, which hosts the Top 30. The last two events of the playoffs also feature no weekend cut, due to the smaller field size.

 

To win the FedEx Cup, a player must finish 1st in the FedEx Cup rankings, as assessed after the Tour Championship. A $70 million prize fund is then distributed. At stake for winning the FedEx Cup is $15 million of that fund and a five year PGA Tour exemption, as well as joining an elite list of players to have won the FedEx Cup. 

 

A second place finish will net you $5 million, a third place finish $4 million and so on. The top 150 players receive a portion of the fund, with players ranked 126th to 150 receiving $70,000. 

 

What is interesting note however is that players outside the top 10 do not actually receive the money as cash, as they would any other tournament. Instead, their payout is put into a retirement account and only accessible at age 45 or older.

HISTORY OF THE NORTHERN TRUST

The Northern Trust was first contested back in 1967, when it was known as the Westchester Classic and a regular season event. Since then, the tournament has undergone several name changes, most notably being called The Barclays since the inception of the FedEx Cup Playoffs until 2017, when it switched to its current name.

A number of courses are used in rotation for The Northern Trust, all which are located in the New England area. These include TPC Boston, Ridgewood, Bethpage Black, Glen Oaks and Westchester Country Club.

 

Due to the exclusivity of getting in, the tournament has had several high profile winners over the years, including Vijay Singh (4 times), Dustin Johnson (3 times), Patrick Reed (2 times), Bryson DeChambeau and Jason Day.

The Northern Trust should not be confused with the former Northern Trust Open, which is now known as the Genesis Invitational.

LIBERTY NATIONAL GOLF CLUB

Liberty National is a relatively new course, having been completed in 2006. Designed by Robert Cupp and Tom Kite, the build cost over $250 million, making it one of the most expensive courses in history. It also features a modern-style clubhouse designed by Lindsay Newman Architecture & Design, and many other country club accommodations.

The course has hosted The Northern Trust three times prior to this year, in 2009, 2013 and 2019. However, it underwent extensive renovations after the 2009 event to decrease its difficulty, as a result of negative feedback from players. The changes included re-countouring many of the greens and moving tee boxes, to provide flexibility to the course. For the 2021 tournament, it will play as a par 71, measuring 7,410 yards.

The course is also known for its spectacular views of both the Manhatten skyline and the Statue of Liberty, which sites just over a mile away from its shores.

OUR PICKS THIS WEEK

Making picks for the FedEx Cup playoff events is always a tough thing to do. The quality of the field is so high and players always seem to be at the top of their game these weeks. But putting that aside, here's who we think will win The Northern Trust this year:

1) Phil Mickelson

2) Dustin Johnson

3) Collin Morikawa

Mickelson is a playing member of Liberty National and knows the course well; a sure advantage over many in the field this week. Johnson played at the Wyndham Championship last week and finished T10, hopefully he can transfer that momentum into this week. He's also the defending FedEx Cup Champion. And finally, Morikawa has had a spectacular season so far, capped by his Open Championship win and T4 at the Olympics, but a win this week will make him the favourite to win the FedEx Cup. 

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Play kicks off early Thursday morning. Who do you think will win this week, let us know in the comments below.

Also stay tuned Friday evening for our Weekend Update post to see what the storylines are heading into the weekend.

-Nick

Toronto Golf Reviews

The 2014 Barclays Picks - Results

The four rounds of the first playoff event of the 2014 FedEx Cup are now over and this year's winner of The 2014 Barclays at Ridgewood Country Club is Hunter Mahan, who shot a 6-under 65 today to win the tournament at 14-under, a two shot lead over Stuart Appleby, Cameron Tringale, and Jason Day. This is Mahan's first win of 2014 and his first win since winning the 2012 Shell Houston Open.

Mahan's 6-under 65 was the low round of the day and was shot by several other players as well. With this win, Mahan earns precious FedEx Cup points. He started the week ranked 62th on the points list but due to his win, he is now on top of the rankings. A good finish also ensures a fair amount of points too. For example, Morgan Hoffman just barely made it into the tournament being ranked 124th earlier this week, but he finished T9 today and has now shot up 52 points to 72 on the points list.

It just goes to show how important these playoff events are for players. A win or even good finishes in a few of these events can put you in a great position to win the FedEx Cup when its all said and done. Henrik Stenson did just that last year, winning the Deutsche Bank and Tour Championship (both playoff events), thus winning him the FedEx Cup.

With so much movement in the FedEx Cup points list in the upcoming weeks, its not too hard to see why the FedEx Cup Playoffs bring such excitement year after year. 

Finally, here is how our picks finished the tournament:

1) Graeme McDowell: T38 at 3-under (-3)
2) Rickie Fowler: T9 at 9-under (-9)
3) Jason Day: T2 at 12-under (-12)

An okay finish for GMac; he probably doesn't like it seeing how he needs to be playing his best golf now to ensure he gets on the European Ryder Cup team. And of course its not surprising to see Fowler and Day near the top. They certainly deserve every cent they're earning given the way their playing as of lately.

Stay tuned for our coverage of the next FedEx Cup playoff event, the 2014 Deutsche Bank Championship.

-Nick
Toronto Golf Reviews

Hunter Mahan wins The 2014 Barclays (Photo by Ross Kinnaird/Getty Images)

The 2014 Barclays Picks - Weekend Update

The cut has been made and there are only two more rounds left of the 2014 Barclays. The co-leaders going into the weekend rounds are Cameron Tringale and Adam Scott, who both lead at 8-under (-8). The hold a one shot lead. The cut this week has also been set at 1-over (+1).

Scoring conditions were good in both rounds and especially in today's round. The low round of the day was a 7-under 64 which was shot by a few players.

A round of note was that of Rory Mcilroy. Rory shot a 74 in his first round, but then rallied to shoot a 65 today, which is good enough for a T27 place.

Here are how our picks are doing:

1) Graeme McDowell: T16 at 4-under (-4)
2) Rickie Fowler: T50 at 1-under (-1)
3) Jason Day: T6 at 6-under (-6)

Jason Day was one of the players who shot the low round of the day. He's probably the most consistent player on tour in terms of his place on the leaderboard. It always seems that he's in and about the top of it.

Stay tuned for the winner this Sunday evening,

-Nick
Toronto Golf Reviews

The 2014 Barclays Picks

It's official now, the 2014 FedEx Cup Playoffs are officially under way, with the first event being The 2014 Barclays, which is being played this week at Ridgewood Country Club in Paramus, New Jersey. As with all playoff events, the Barclays prize fund is a little higher than the regular PGA tournament and of course offers tons of FedEx Cup points.

Ridgewood Country Club has hosted The Barclays twice in the past, in 2008 and 2010. It has also hosted several senior and amateur events, as well as a Ryder Cup in 1935. However the club is probably known best as being the club where Byron Nelson was worked as an assistant pro, earlier in his career. It plays as a par 71 and 7,319 yards.

The Barclays features the top 125 players on the FedEx Cup points rankings, which includes many of the top players in the world. Here are our picks for the Barclays winner this year:

1) Graeme McDowell: he's always one of our picks whenever he's playing
2) Rickie Fowler: he's playing hot golf at the moment and is probably playing as the second best player in the world behind Rory McIlroy
3) Jason Day: I don't know how he does it, but Jason Day's always near the top of any leaderboard.

Stay tuned for our weekend update of the Barclays,

-Nick
Toronto Golf Reviews