The most lucrative week on the PGA Tour is here

Golf Digest

Did you know there’s nearly $100 million (!) in FedEx Cup bonuses on the line at this week’s BMW Championship? Admittedly, I didn’t until yesterday, and I follow this stuff pretty closely. This, in a nutshell, is the problem with the PGA Tour’s seemingly ever-changing postseason, which has been promised another makeover by new commissioner Brian Rolapp starting in 2028. While golf fans can only hope for a better—and more consistent—format, in the meantime, there is a lot at stake at Bellerive Country Club, where the remaining 50 players in the playoffs will be competing for that gigantic pool of bonus money plus a $20-million tournament purse.

However, it should be noted that Scottie Scheffler already clinched $23 million of that nearly $100 million because he’s guaranteed to be No. 1 in the standings no matter what happens the next four days. So he sucked most of the drama out of this payment just like he did on Sunday during his eight-shot romp in Memphis. Scheffler also earned a $10-million bonus for being No. 1 through the regular season, so it’s going to be a particularly great Christmas for young Bennett and Remy this year. And, yes, there will be a lot of money up for grabs at next week’s Tour Championship. It just won’t be bonus money, but instead a $40-million tournament purse that will be spread among the 30 golfers fortunate enough to advance to East Lake.

For more on all things, well, technically, 10 things, heading into the PGA Tour’s penultimate event of 2026, check out Shane Ryan’s weekly column.

Scottie's alpha resurgence stirs POTY drama: 10 things for the BMW Championship

Down to the top 50! But we already know No. 1.

By Shane Ryan

What You Need to Know

Joel Beall

LIV’s “mystery” lead investor spoke to players Tuesday night. That would be Ted Goldthorpe of BC Partners, a private equity firm based in London that has ties to GSE Worldwide—the agency that represents a sizable portion of LIV’s roster. It was never truly a mystery, despite LIV not announcing the name. Goldthorpe was at LIV Bedminster earlier this month and the GSE connection made this a known thing throughout the industry. What is not known is if BC Partners’ investment is actually a loan, if it's contingent on other investors joining and/or certain LIV players returning. LIV Golf CEO Scott O’Neil is supposed to speak at 1 p.m. today outside of Indianapolis, which is the only scheduled press conference this week, so perhaps more detail will be given then.

Tod Leonard

Preston Stout has officially punched his ticket to Pebble Beach and St. Andrews. The Oklahoma State senior was awarded the Mark H. McCormack Medal on Wednesday as the No. 1-ranked male in the 2026 World Amateur Golf Ranking. With the honor, which is awarded jointly by the USGA and R&A, the 22-year-old Texan gets exemptions into two majors in 2027—the U.S. Open at Pebble Beach and 155th Open at the Old Course. Stout won five times in the 2025-26 college season, including the individual NCAA title and the Big 12 Championship, which he captured for a record third time. We’ll next see Stout when he plays for the U.S. Walker Cup team in Ireland, Sept 5-6.

Joel Beall

An interesting name has been added to the U.S. Presidents Cup team. That would be Gary Woodland, who’s in the middle of an incredible comeback campaign. Earlier this year, Woodland went public with his struggles with PTSD following brain surgery, an issue that makes it hard for him to play when big crowds are around. Just a month after that announcement, Woodland captured the Houston Open for his first win since the 2019 U.S. Open. While Woodland is in the top 50 in the world and No. 31 in the FedEx Cup rankings, captain Brandt Snedeker has gone ahead and tabbed Woodland to be a part of his assistant captains. Woodland also served in a similar capacity last year for Keegan Bradley at the Ryder Cup.