FedExCup Comes Down to This

Thirty players go after the Tour Championship tournament prize this weekend at East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta. But only a few will be in the running for the even bigger prize of $10 million that comes with the FedExCup title, also decided in this event. Dustin Johnson has the most FedEx points, but he'll have plenty of competition nipping at his heels in this, the final leg of the Cup. With so many in the picture, this star-studded field should make the Tour Championship betting interesting. Here are the favorites for the tourney:

Likely on the Leaderboard

DUSTIN JOHNSON is the leading money winner, FedEx points leader and not far from a world No. 1 ranking. He's been super consistent since winning the U.S. Open, and with top fives in his last two visits to East Lake, and top 10s in his last three, he has to be the logical favorite.

JASON DAY is still No. 1 in the World Golf Rankings, but he hasn't won a major this year or a tournament at all since The Players in May. He withdrew from the BMW with recurring back issues, which may be a deterrence. But if you don't consider it a factor, consider that he has three top 10s in five tries in this tournament. He should be a factor.

PATRICK REED - Winner of the Barclays, he has a top 15 in eight of his last nine starts (no worse than T22). Consider this: He's second in points, and the No. 2 ranked player in the FedExCup at East Lake has won each of the past four seasons.

ADAM SCOTT hasn't won an event in the series, but three top 4s give him enough points for third in the FedEx standings. Plus he's a regular top 10 at East Lake. But can he finish? He hasn't done that since winning two straight early in the year.

JORDAN SPIETH - The defending Cup champion has a win and runner-up in three appearances at East Lake, and has a chance to become the first back-to-back winner of the FedExCup. But it is more of an outside chance this year, because he just hasn't played up to his 2015 standards. At seventh in the standings, he'd have to play well AND let the field come to him.

Possible Spoilers

RORY McILROY - The winner of the recent Deutsche Bank was the runner-up in the Tour Championship in 2014. He has had two top 10s in three appearances in the tournament. But his play hasn't been too consistent all year. If he's on the up side, though, we know he's trouble.

PAUL CASEY has played East Lake twice, with both outings resulting in top-five finishes. With back-to-back runner-up finishes entering this tournament, Casey is fifth in the FedEx standings. He could quite literally steal the Cup with a victory.

BUBBA WATSON is pretty much out of the points race for the big check. But he has the incentive of making the Ryder Cup with a good showing. He's performed well in this, too, with top-5 finishes in two of his last three Tour Championships.

RUSSELL KNOX - If you like stats, he is as steady as it gets, ranking eighth in fairways hit, sixth in greens in regulation percentage and 20th in scrambling. That puts him ahead of more chalky options like Matt Kuchar and Phil Mickelson. He's also ahead of them in FedExCup standings, at eighth.

J.B. HOLMES earned a top 10 last year in his first trip to East Lake, and was fourth last week. He was just selected as a Ryder Cup captain’s pick, so he'll want to prove his worth.

Tour Championship Betting

While Johnson is the logical choice, his +450 in the Tour Championship betting futures sent me on a bargain hunt for better value. That took me to Day, who is at a more fair +800 among the usual favs. But my bargain choice is Reed at +1400. If you really want to hit one out, consider Holmes at +3300. Plus, there are some nice picks in the golf round matchups. That also makes for good scouting for the match-play Ryder Cup, which is just around the bend.