So, how do you feel about how you prepared for the FedExCup Playoffs? The series begins with this week’s FedEx St. Jude Championship, ya know.

It’s fair to acknowledge that Segment 3 of PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf presented by PGA TOUR Superstore requires the most conviction and the most patience, and now we’ve arrived where it all can pay off.

Because there are no more cuts, round-by-round fantasy scoring will be negligible in the long term. It’s too tough to chase low rounds and bogey-free scores, not to mention that the bonus points for those on the daily also have a way of washing out relative to your primary competition. Instead, it’s all about quadrupled FedExCup bonus points across the last three events of the fantasy season.

As it concerns our world, each of the winners in the Playoffs will receive 200 FedExCup bonus points. That’s four times the norm of, say, last week’s Wyndham Championship. (As noted in How to Play), FedExCup bonus points for the results of the TOUR Championship will align with the first two legs, even though FedExCup points are not awarded to the golfers in the tournament proper.) But as you know, for the first time this season, captains’ points are doubled, so that means that winners designated as captains will be credited with 400 points.

Consider that the top fantasy scorer at the Wyndham totaled 577 points. Go back to the stingier U.S. Open (for which FedExCup points are inflated because it’s a major) and the pacesetter rung up just 479 points. Those are total team points for an entire roster for an entire tournament. Suffice it to say that we’re poised for our own volatility in the Playoffs.

Since the potential impact of FedExCup bonus points during the Playoffs is massive, having rationed starts for the likes of Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy was entirely worth it. Furthermore, leveraging your remaining allotment against your targets of opposition is critical. Lo and behold, McIlroy tossed a bone to gamers who couldn’t resist burning a start earlier in Segment 3 by deciding not to peg it at TPC Southwind this week.

McIlroy’s decision also presents as a wrench for front-runners who holstered all three starts for the Playoffs, but unless a league leader is sitting on cushion that would require the nearest pursuer to hit an inside straight on the river to prevail, all gamers are both empowered and in jeopardy of captains who win, especially those not named Scheffler and McIlroy. And trust me, stories of wild slingshots are about to be written. I’ve been victimized in multiple ways in the various Experts Leagues in which I’ve participated over the years. Just hang on and remain committed to your plan, all while remaining fluid to adjust to what’s best for your objective after each of the first two legs.

Elsewhere, how would you like to win $1,000,000 for your performance in the Playoffs? As if you’re going to reject that possibility!

"Perfect 30 presented by LocaliQ" has returned, and it’s free to play.

The separate fantasy game requires you to predict the actual outcome of the TOUR Championship using the 70 golfers who qualified for the Playoffs, but an array of bonus points will keep the action lively as the Playoffs prolong. My annual Power Rankings for the Playoffs doubles as a primer for Perfect 30 in that my Power Rankings is my entry.

The special Power Rankings includes steps for how to build a roster in part using the two-year history of the Playoffs since the field was reduced to 70 in 2023. I also injected strategic advice for which bonus points in Perfect 30 are worth ignoring in favor of those easier to snag.

Once you navigate to the game, you can load my entry via the Autofill function if you want, and then you can modify it as much as you wish. When all 30 slots are filled, entries are saved automatically. The deadline to submit your entry is 11:59 p.m. ET on Wednesday, Aug. 6. Adjust for your time zone as usual.

Enjoy the game, and thanks for giving those Power Rankings a read. Hit me on X anytime you want to review any of your considerations.

Captain

Scottie Scheffler … Duh. This the whole point all along. He’s the play for this role unless you need three consecutive non-Scheffler/non-McIlroy captains to win for you to win your league. But hey, that could be a fun ride, too.

Other considerations

• Xander Schauffele ... With McIlroy out of the mix, Schauffele slides into the 2-hole among the chalk, which is astonishingly limited as it concerns matchups at TPC Southwind. Schauffele was the runner-up here last year, and he’s been pesky throughout 2025, but that’s also a downgrade from his once-automatic profile. He’s 42nd in the FedExCup and not yet guaranteed a return to the TOUR Championship, so a start this week is a no-brainer. The No. 4 in my Power Rankings arrives having gone T8-T7 in his fortnight in the U.K.
• Matt Fitzpatrick ... The No. 2 in my Power Rankings is among the hottest of hands upon arrival, so chasers who don’t mind the risk and/or are short of three starts for Scheffler are rewarded with this option at the perfect time.

Rounding out the roster

I’d have Fitzpatrick rostered if not for the fact that I’m out of starts. Meanwhile, although Matsuyama is the defending champion and there is no cut, he’s forever a wild card due to his propensity to withdraw immediately before an opening round or during competition. He’s yet to this season but it’s usually not wise to amble that close to the sun. So, he might not appear in my lineup when the flag drops on Thursday.

My starters

• Harris English
• Russell Henley
• Xander Schauffele
• Scottie Scheffler (C)

My bench

• Hideki Matsuyama (1)
• Wyndham Clark (2)

Careful

For almost every tournament, a usually impressive subset of the field warrants avoiding, and it might be represented in my Power Rankings, which is not written in the context of any fantasy golf format. In this section, I single out those who demand a pause and why.

Sepp Straka ... The big fella is among the subset of elite talent that can be extremely aggravating to own in the short term, and I don’t hide it in either Power Rankings linked at the top. He’s No. 15 this week, which is to say that he deserves the additional attention but he’s still most valuable in long-term formats and fractionally in DFS when you’re willing to absorb his salary.

Shane Lowry ... Rested since polishing off a T40 with a 66 in his return to Royal Portrush, site of his victory at The Open Championship in 2019. Every season, there are guys for whom it’d have been juicier if the Playoffs arrived sooner; he’s in that club this year. He’s cooled since a strong spring and he finished outside the top 45 at TPC Southwind in his last two trips (2022, 2024).

Ludvig Åberg ... Continues to be a popular pick, this time on about 21 percent of rosters saved at last check, but he’s struggled putting four rounds together more often than he profiles. To be blunt, he just hasn’t been fulfilling expectations. Debuted at TPC Southwind with a 40th-place finish last year, a month prior to having surgery on his left knee.

Chris Kirk ... There are just as many reasons to endorse him as there are not to. His job for 2026 has been safe as a winner in 2024, he’s proven to have the mettle inside and outside the ropes, and his form has been fantastic across his last six starts, but he’s also the last man inside the top-70 bubble (at 61st) following last week’s T5. Ownership is predictably low in the fantasy game, but he could appear more attractive in DFS and in betting markets, too. We’ve often witnessed a known talent answer the bell to qualify for the Playoffs, only to then peter out. And now he needs at least a two-way T19 to keep his Playoffs alive.

Returning to competition

Erik van Rooyen ... An injured back forced him out of the Wyndham Championship during his second round. It also almost thwarted a tee time at TPC Southwind, but he hung on at 68th in points. Given the malady and a wildly inconsistent season, his only dynamic usage is in DFS. With no cut, why not?

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