ATLANTA -- The PGA Tour's FedEx Cup playoff system has been the subject of considerable debate since its inception during the 2007 season.
Several tweaks have been made along the way, but the basic format remains in Year 9: four playoff events that offer more points than during the regular season and a playoff finale at the Tour Championship where every player's points are reset, assuring a mathematical chance for all players at East Lake Golf Club to win the FedEx Cup title.
But if the various points permutations and Tour Championship reset are difficult to follow when the Tour Championship gets underway Thursday, don't expect any big changes in the near future.
PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem declared the playoffs "hugely successful'' during a news conference Wednesday at East Lake.
When asked specifically about the example of Sergio Garcia skipping the first two playoff events -- in theory, the Spaniard could have done that and still won the FedEx Cup -- Finchem said he saw no changes forthcoming.
"As we look at the next five years and some of the thinking that our team is doing, I think it's going to continue to grow in its strength, and doing anything that would say, OK, this player has to do this or that, that's kind of a negative,'' Finchem said.
"The extent to which you're going to play in the playoff events should be a competitive situation, just like any other tournament has. We don't require anybody to play the Players Championship. We don't require a player to play because it's Jack's [Nicklaus] tournament. We don't require you to go play a major because it's a big deal.
"So I don't think we would go down that path. If things started to fall apart, that would be different. But losing a player here or there, regardless of who it is. ... there's been several years where a fairly significant player had for whatever reason, said, 'I'm not going to play that week.' It's not helpful, but the amount of talent that's out there now, it's not that big a deal. We don't like it, we would rather see Sergio play, but I don't see us going down that path.''
The tour this year made a modest tweak to the system, reducing the number of points awarded at FedEx Cup events. The winners now receive 2,000 points instead of 2,500 -- after getting 500 for a win at a regular event. Hence, the reset of points is different at the Tour Championship.
Jason Day has 2,000 points, and although he had a lead big enough entering the Tour Championship to clinch the overall title, with a reset he now has just a 200-point lead over Jordan Spieth.
That sets up another interesting scenario: Henrik Stenson as a possible FedEx Cup champion without having won a tournament.
The Swede, who captured the Tour Championship and the FedEx title two years ago, is fourth in the standings. He could finish second and even as low as a tie for third and win the FedEx Cup. Sure, he needs a good bit to happen, but the scenario exists.
So after a season of golf that stretches back to October, through four major championships, four WGC events and four FedEx playoff events, the guy with the $10 million and FedEx trophy might not have won any of them?
Finchem wasn't asked about that possibility, but there's no way he could spin that as a "hugely successful'' aspect of the FedEx Cup playoffs.