Tour Championship: Low-key Schauffele can finish FedEx Cup on a high

Brian Keogh

24 August 2022

Xander Schauffele is a low-key figure who regularly shuns controversy. He also just so happens to be the Olympic champion.

Sure, he might not be PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan's idea of a razzmatazz winner of the $18 million FedEx Cup bonus, but he ticks all the boxes in the season-ending Tour Championship at East Lake.

Although he’s technically the fourth seed, Schauffele sits third going into the competition after Will Zalatoris withdrew due to two herniated discs in his back. Schauffele will start four strokes behind pacesetter Scottie Scheffler, the world number one and Masters champion, but he has an excellent record at this Atlanta venue and must have a good chance of claiming his fourth win this year.

Will Zalatoris: withdrew due to two herniated discs in his back

Triumphant in 2012 before finishing tied-seventh (2018), second (2019) and tied-second (2020), Schauffele also posted the lowest 72-hole score last year from the staggered start. He took third in the BMW Championship at Wilmington Country Club last week and has all the skills needed to win in Atlanta, where players who thrive by hitting greens in regulation usually thrive.

Schauffele ranks 11th in that department this year and, as the sixth-best player in strokes gained from tee-to-green behind absentee Zalatoris, this is his week to shine.

The aforementioned Scheffler will begin the tournament on 10-under par, but with just two appearances at this venue - fifth in 2020 and tied-22nd last year - Schauffele boasts an experience edge and can peg back that shot-a-round deficit.

That said, Scheffler is a different player in 2022 and already held four trophies aloft this campaign. Given his headstart, it’s very difficult to envisage him finishing outside the top three. "There might be a tiny bit of added pressure but I get two extra strokes, which is definitely nice," said Scheffler. "It's definitely a position that I want to be in."

Patrick Cantlay, who starts on eight-under par, bids to become the first man to successfully defend the FedEx Cup. But, while he's timed his run to perfection with a win and three top-10 finishes in his last five starts, he sounds like he is looking forward to some time off.

"I'm excited about the opportunity I have this week, starting this event only two shots back, but I'll be happy when the season is over and I get a couple-week break before the Presidents Cup," he said.

It's hard to see anyone outside the top five making a run at the title, but, with the fairways soft and the course playing long, Rory McIlroy could cause a minor shock. He has won twice at East Lake - a playoff to capture the FedEx Cup in 2016 before repeating the trick in 2019, when he overhauled a five-shot deficit.