A new era of the PGA Tour begins this week as the FedEx Cup Fall makes its debut with its first tournament, the 2023 Fortinet Championship. Players inside the top 50 of the FedEx Cup from this past season will still compete, but this is primarily geared towards those from 51st on back in the 2022-23 FedEx Cup Standings.
The FedEx Cup Fall will run from this week’s Fortinet Championship through the RSM Classic in November. Following the RSM Classic, players ranked from 51-60 in the FedEx Cup Fall Standings will qualify for the first two, full-field Signature Events of 2024 and players ranked from 71-125 will retain their PGA Tour cards for 2024.
This year’s Fortinet Champuonship will be contested at the Silverado Resort North Course and will play as a Par 72, 7,123 yard layout this week. Some big changes are in store this week, as holes 8-17 have been re-routed, which is bound to test many of the players who annually play this event. The change was prompted in the name of the fans, as the new layout will make the holes more accessible to the fans and open up additional room for future fan amenities.
The last two editions have been won by Max Homa, who came from behind late in the going to beat Maverick McNealy by one stroke in 2021 and Danny Willett by one stroke in 2022. With a win this week, Homa would be the first player to successfully defend a PGA Tour title in 3 straight years since Steve Strucker did it at the John Deere Classic in 2009, 2010, and 2011.
Player to Fade:
Last season was one to forget for D. A. Points, who made the cut just 1 time in 9 starts. Points has fared even worse, as hard as that may be to believe, at Silverado Resort, missing the cut here in all 4 of his previous starts. At 46 years old, Points is just counting down the days until he turns 50 and is eligible to play on the Champions Tour. Until then, another missed cut is in the cards for him this week.
Dark Horse:
At 49 years old, Cameron Percy is the epitome of the journeyman. 215 career starts, 0 wins, 2 top 5’s, and 12 top 10 finishes in his career. Percy had 4 top 25 finishes last season in 18 starts and continues to prove he has some gas left in the tank in the twilight of his PGA Tour career. Percy has played well in this event in recent years, with 1 top 10 and 4 top 30’s in his last 5 starts at Silverado. A win would be one for the ages for Percy this week, but we predict that he will keep his top 30 streak alive and tack on a 5th top 30 finish in this event.
Top 10:
Arguably the most surprising player to be a part of the inaugural FedEx Cup Fall, Justin Thomas will start the campaign at 71st place in the point standings. Last season was a struggle for Thomas, who mustered just 3 top 10’s in 20 starts. With a looming date with the Ryder Cup coming up in 2 weeks, Thomas is hoping to right the ship and get back to playing his best. Silverado Resort could be the catalyst to do just that. Thomas has not teed it up here since 2019, but his past results are pretty indicative of what could possibly be this week, as he has 2 top 5’s and 3 top 10’s in 4 starts here. A win may not necessarily be in the cards given the recent state of Thomas’ game, but a top 10 this week could really help give him some momentum heading into the Ryder Cup.
Winner:
The 37th ranked player in the Official World Golf Ranking, Sahith Theegala closed the season strong, with a pair of top 15 finishes on the way to a 31st place finish in the FedEx Cup. With his recent momentum, Theegala hopes to continue his success in an event where he has played well before, as Theegala has 2 top 15 finishes in this event in 3 career starts, highlighted by a T-6 finish last year. Theegala’s success hinges on his short game, ranking inside the top 35 in Strokes Gained: Around-the-Green and Putting last season on the PGA Tour. In a relatively weak Fortinet Championship field, we predict that Sahith Theegala will put it all together and pick up his first career PGA Tour victory!