As much as we criticize the design and marketing of the FedEx Cup, there are some positives that we can take from its evolution. And it took two full-reads of Scott Michaux's commentary for me to be a believer, if you want to call it that.
Michaux writes that the FedEx Cup is in a much better place than it was the previous two years. That wasn't too hard of a task, considering the winner of the Cup had already been decided prior to the Tour Championship in '07 and '08. But this is where Michaux nails it:
Certainly this creation is far from perfect, but in its third season the PGA Tour is finally delivering on a promise to add some heft to the back end of its schedule.
Yes, it's goofy that six-time winner Woods could theoretically have swept the three playoff events, finished second at East Lake and still lost the trophy and $10 million bonus to Jim Furyk, who hasn't won a tournament all season.
However, these playoffs have Woods and Furyk and Phil Mickelson and Padraig Harrington and Ernie Els all playing deeper and more often at a time of year they'd normally be vacationing.
Then there are the stories of Heath Slocum and Marc Leischman, who played their way into the top-30 of the FedEx Cup standings, giving them automatic exemptions into the first three majors of 2010 and all five invitational events.
The FedEx Cup has a long way to go before the playoff system is a legitimate one. Match play for the final event is probably the only answer. But let's put things into perspective: this season long race is making golf more exciting that it ever has been in late September.
