Every player in the 30-man field at East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta knew what was on the line when they teed it up in the Tour Championship this week.
The FedEx Cup Playoff’s $70 million prize pool was obviously on the mind of those towards the top of the leaderboard where the most volatility was possible, as evidenced by Paul Casey’s strategy on the 18th hole.
Coming up just short of the par-5 in two, Casey hit his eagle pitch five feet past the hole. Sitting in solo fifth place, Casey had nothing monetarily to gain by making the putt — he was four shots back of fourth place — but he did run the risk of dropping into a tie for fifth were he unable to make his par.
Unlikely as it may have been to three-putt from five feet, Casey took no precautions and as a result, secured himself an extra $300,000.
When you know two putts or better earns you $2.5 million, you lag your five-footer ? pic.twitter.com/7D05gxMmie
— By The Flagstick (@ByTheFlagstick) August 25, 2019
Casey’s solo fifth-place finish earned him $2.5 million, which would have been the highest single-tournament winner’s check all season on the PGA Tour for any event not named the Tour Championship.
Had Casey three-putted, he would have shared fifth-place money with Adam Scott, which would have taken his windfall down to $2.2 million.
Here’s what every player in the field made at the Tour Championship, led by Rory McIlroy’s $15 million.
1. Rory McIlroy – $15 million
2. Xander Schauffele – $5 million
T3. Justin Thomas – $3.5 million
T3. Brooks Koepka – $3.5 million
5. Paul Casey – $2.5 million
6. Adam Scott – $1.9 million
7. Tony Finau – $1.3 million
8. Chez Reavie – $1.1 million
T9. Patrick Reed – $843,333.33
T9. Kevin Kisner – $843,333.33
T9. Hideki Matsuyama – $843,333.33
T12. Bryson DeChambeau – $682,500
T12. Jon Rahm – $682,500
14. Jason Kokrak – $620,000
15. Gary Woodland – $595,000
T16. Tommy Fleetwood – $551,666.68
T16. Webb Simpson – $551,666.68
T16. Matt Kuchar – $551,666.68
T19. Sungjae Im – $512,500
T19. Rickie Fowler – $512,500
T21. Louis Oosthuizen – $478,000
T21. Abraham Ancer – $478,000
T21. Patrick Cantlay – $478,000
T24. Marc Leishman – $450,500
T24. Brandt Snedeker – $450,500
T26. Justin Rose – $430,000
T26. Corey Conners – $430,000
28. Charles Howell III – $415,000
T29. Lucas Glover – $400,000
T29. Dustin Johnson – $400,000
