The first FedEx Cup Playoffs event of the postseason saw Justin Rose reign supreme over J.J. Spaun in a dramatic playoff at the 2025 FedEx St. Jude Championship, but that is not where the drama ended Sunday at TPC Southwind in Memphis, Tennessee. While eyes were locked on the top of the leaderboard, well-known names were duking it out near the bottom as those who compiled enough points to finish the weekend inside the top 50 of the FedEx Cup standings qualified for next week’s BMW Championship and extended their seasons.
The top 50 not only serves as a cut-off to continue in the postseason but it a qualifier for the following year’s signature events. Those who made their way into the BMW Championship simultaneously qualified for all eight signature events where elevated purses and elevated FedEx Cup points are awarded, giving players a built-in moat around which to build their 2026 schedule.
“Well, being that I got a handful of spots this year, which I’m incredibly grateful for, unfortunately I really didn’t take advantage of many of those opportunities up until Jack’s event,” said Rickie Fowler, who climbed inside the top 50 thanks to a T6 finish at the St. Jude Championship. “Didn’t play that well in any of them. Those elevated fields and maybe some more points, I didn’t really get them.
“But it was great to have a tee time in them this year, and didn’t really want to bank on that for next year. Yeah, nice to be in a position where we’ll be able to be back in those and not have to write notes and calls and ask for favors.”
Let’s take a look at how those who were on the bubble fared this week in Memphis. Check out the updated top 30 of the FedEx Cup standings, those who would qualify for the Tour Championship if they remain in their spots next week.
Players who moved inside the top 50
| 37th (+15) |
Kurt Kitayama |
T9 |
52nd |
| 46th (+7) |
Bud Cauley |
T14 |
53rd |
| 48th (+6) |
Rickie Fowler |
T6 |
64th |
| 49th (+10) |
Jhonattan Vegas |
T14 |
59th |
| 50th (+1) |
J.T. Poston |
T22 |
51st |
Fowler was the biggest mover of the week as the former Players Championship winner went from barely inside the top 70 to just inside the top 50 … but being inside that number is all that matters. His T6 finish — doubling for his best result of the season — could not have come at a better time given the elevated FedEx Cup points available. Fowler missed the playoffs entirely in 2024.
Meanwhile, Vegas was teetering on the bubble late and looked like he was going to unfortunately fall on the wrong side. After four bogeys in his first 10 holes Sunday, he played his final eight holes in 3 under to punch his ticket into next week. He will now try to play himself inside the top 30 and qualify for the Tour Championship for the first time since 2017.
“It was a fight. It was one of the hardest rounds of the year I would say,” he said. “Didn’t feel great physically. It’s been a long week, heat, all of it. Didn’t feel 100%. I started kind of shaky the first six holes. I knew that my best wasn’t out there, so I just had to fight, and I had to get my mind in the right frame.
“Luckily, [I] was able to do that and turn around and make some great birdies on 7 and 8 that kind of got the ship pointed the right direction. But it was a fight all the way. I knew it was going to be that way today. That’s kind of what this time of the year is all about. You know you’re going to have to sweat it out out here.”
Players who moved outside the top 50
| 52nd (-9) |
Aldrich Potgieter |
T59 |
43rd |
| 54th (-6) |
Jordan Spieth |
T38 |
48th |
| 55th (-8) |
Jake Knapp |
T62 |
47th |
| 56th (-7) |
Wyndham Clark |
T56 |
49th |
| 57th (-7) |
Min Woo Lee |
T68 |
50th |
Some serious star power will be left on the sideline for the last two weeks of the playoffs as Potgieter fell just shy of knocking his way into the BMW Championship field. The South African was the lone rookie to make the FedEx Cup Playoffs, and not even a birdie on his final hole was enough to extend his season.
Unfortunately, major champions like Spieth and Clark fell on the wrong side of the number, too. Spieth was battling the bubble for most of Sunday before his second shot into his 72nd hole found the water and ultimately sunk his chances. The three-time major champion will miss out on the BMW Championship for the second straight season, while Clark will miss the season finale after finishes of solo 8th and solo 3rd the last two years.
Lee entered the week as the bubble boy, and he quickly gave those on the outside looking in some hope when his name fell to the bottom of the leaderboard Thursday. He never got airborne at TPC Southwind and played his final round of the year in 2 hours and 10 minutes to make it a swift, yet disappointing, trip to the playoffs.