Whose FedEx Cup Hopes May Be Fading In Detroit?
Three players who may be watching their FedEx Cup dreams evaporate this week in Detroit.
There are just two opportunities remaining this season for players to make their move as they look to position themselves for the upcoming FedEx Cup playoffs in August.
This week at the Rocket Mortgage Classic in Detroit, Michigan, is the first chance. After this week there will be just one remaining opportunity at next week’s Wyndham Championship for players to either improve their standing or to get on the right side of the bubble as the season draws to an end.
The top 125 in this season’s FedEx Cup standings at the end of next week will move on to the first leg of the playoffs at the FedEx St. Jude Championship in Memphis, Tennessee, the week after. For anyone outside of that top 125, their season will be over.
For some, their dreams of making this year’s FedEx Cup playoffs will evaporate this week in Detroit.
With one round of the Rocket Mortgage Classic officially in the books, here is a look at three players that in all probability need to make a move on Friday in order to keep their hopes alive.
Rickie Fowler
Rickie Fowler has certainly had more lows than highs in recent seasons and the 2021-22 season hasn’t been much different thus far.
The 2015 Players Champion had his best result this season near the very beginning, which came at the CJ Cup last October where Rickie picked up a T3 finish at The Summit Club in Las Vegas.
That would be his only top 10 finish this season and consequently, he currently finds himself right on that top 125 bubble in the FedEx Cup standings. That was coming into the week.
Following an opening-round 73 at the Rocket Mortgage Classic Rickie is projected to slip down to 129 at the moment. With a projected cutline of -4 according to Data Golf, the 33-year-old Fowler will need to conjure up something special on Friday if he hopes to be around for the weekend and in the process keep fading FedEx Cup dreams alive.
A missed cut in Detroit would presumably see Rickie some 10 points adrift of that 125 mark at the moment with only one event remaining. His chances of making the playoffs wouldn’t be completely over but that hill to climb would become increasingly steeper as things stand.
Nick Hardy
PGA Tour rookie Nick Hardy is having a nice debut season on Tour. Since his return from an injury in early June, the 26-year-old Hardy has reeled off six consecutive made cuts on the PGA Tour.
A run that included impressive finishes of T14th at this year’s U.S. Open and T8th at the Travelers Championship in late June.
Even with some nice results this season, Hardy still found himself outside of the top 125 in the FedEx Cup standings coming into the week at 130th. The University of Illinois alum opened with a 71 on Thursday and as things currently stand is projected to drop to 133rd in the standings, some 40 points outside of the playoffs.
Hardy will need to fight to make the weekend in Detroit this week if he is to keep any hopes of making this year’s FedEx Cup alive.
Harry Higgs
Following a nice little start to the season it’s been a tough stretch of late for Harry Higgs who has four missed cuts in his last six starts.
Despite eight missed cuts in his last eleven starts Higgs still found himself with a chance of making the FedEx Cup playoffs coming into the week. This is thanks in large part because of finishes of 9th at the CJ Cup, 14th at this year’s Masters, and an 11th just two starts ago at the Barracuda Championship.
The 30-year-old Higgs came into the week at 139th but following an opening round 72, even Par start, he is currently projected to fall four places in the standings.
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Harry Higgs has to make the cut at this week’s Rocket Mortgage Classic if he wants to keep already faint hopes of making this year’s FedEx Cup playoffs alive.