ATLANTA – Tommy Fleetwood’s late collapse earlier this month at the FedEx St. Jude Championship resonated across the golf world as he attempted to win his first PGA Tour event in his 162nd start.
The Englishman failed to birdie the par-5 16th hole after a poor chip and bogeyed the 17th to finish tied for third at TPC Southwind, a shot outside a playoff that was won by Justin Rose. Fleetwood followed his near miss in Memphis with a tie for fourth last week at the BMW Championship – which he said felt like a better result than his showing at the first playoff stop.
Given his form, Fleetwood is among the week’s favorites at East Lake, which sets up an interesting scenario where he could claim his long-awaited first Tour title and the FedExCup.
“I think different tournaments have different meanings to you. There’s so many unbelievable tournaments. I’m not going to be picky about which one I choose to have as the first one,” Fleetwood said. “This one would be a good one. I think there’s a bunch. I really, really do. Putting emphasis on one is pretty hard. But I think it would be pretty funny if I won this week and then got the FedExCup as well.”
In 2017, Paul Casey was in a similar position heading into the finale. Although the Englishman had won on Tour he was winless that season and took a two-stroke lead into the final round at East Lake to set up a chance for the ultimate walk-off for the FedExCup title. Casey struggled to a closing 73 to finish fifth.
The Tour changed the format for the Tour Championship this year, reverting to 72 holes of stroke play with everyone starting at even par. The previous format had given the points leaders heading into East Lake a starting-strokes advantage.
