FedEx Cup playoff qualification has given 21-year-old Jackson Koivun another major milestone after he secured the final spot in the 70-player field.
Remittances Pakistan Receives $3.63 Billion from Overseas Pakistanis in July
Koivun finished tied for 29th at the Wyndham Championship on Sunday. The event marked his fifth PGA Tour start since turning professional.
Two weeks earlier, Koivun won the 3M Open. He shot a third-round 61 before holding off Scottie Scheffler on the final day. That victory lifted him to No. 70 in the season-long FedEx Cup standings.
The young American then held that position through the Wyndham Championship. As a result, he earned a place in the playoffs despite having far fewer starts than most players on the tour.
“I obviously wanted to make the playoffs, and I knew that was a far-fetched goal,” Koivun said. “If I told myself back in June that I would be sitting at 70 and waiting it out in Greensboro, I think I’d be pretty happy.”
Veterans miss out
Michael Brennan was the only player outside the top 70 to break into the playoff field during the final week. His Wyndham Championship victory moved him from No. 105 to No. 47.
Steven Fisk suffered the biggest drop among players inside the playoff line. After missing the cut, he fell from No. 69 to No. 71.
Meanwhile, Keegan Bradley’s 15-year run of consecutive playoff appearances came to an end. The former major champion entered the week at No. 72 and finished at No. 74.
Bradley needed a two-way tie for 38th or better to qualify. However, his final-round 68 left him tied for 49th at 6 under.
“It’s a pretty good streak,” Bradley said. “Normally I’d be going on to the playoffs in years past right now.”
Jason Day also saw his 18-year streak of playoff appearances end. The Australian finished No. 82 after missing the cut at the Wyndham Championship.
Tony Finau, meanwhile, missed the playoffs after 11 consecutive appearances. He ended the regular season at No. 98.
Other notable players who failed to qualify included Matt Wallace at No. 73, Denny McCarthy at No. 86 and Brooks Koepka at No. 94.
FedEx Cup playoff field
Jackson Koivun will now join Scottie Scheffler, Rory McIlroy, Collin Morikawa, Viktor Hovland, Justin Thomas and other leading players at the FedEx St. Jude Championship.
The 70-player field is:
1–10: Scottie Scheffler, Matt Fitzpatrick, Cameron Young, Wyndham Clark, Chris Gotterup, Collin Morikawa, Si Woo Kim, Sam Burns, Tommy Fleetwood, Ludvig Aberg.
11–20: Xander Schauffele, Rory McIlroy, Jacob Bridgeman, Akshay Bhatia, Russell Henley, Ryan Gerard, Min Woo Lee, Kristoffer Reitan, Alex Fitzpatrick, Hideki Matsuyama.
21–30: J.J. Spaun, Ryan Fox, Viktor Hovland, Justin Rose, Alex Smalley, Tom Kim, Gary Woodland, Rickie Fowler, Adam Scott, J.T. Poston.
31–40: Robert MacIntyre, Nicolai Hojgaard, Kurt Kitayama, Bud Cauley, Aaron Rai, Ben Griffin, Sepp Straka, Michael Thorbjornsen, Justin Thomas, Jake Knapp.
41–50: Nico Echavarria, Patrick Cantlay, Ryo Hisatsune, Sahith Theegala, Eric Cole, Alex Noren, Michael Brennan, Matt McCarty, Keith Mitchell, Maverick McNealy.
51–60: Harris English, Max Homa, Sungjae Im, Jordan Spieth, Sam Stevens, Pierceson Coody, Sudarshan Yellamaraju, Harry Hall, Corey Conners, Daniel Berger.
61–70: Michael Kim, Shane Lowry, Nick Taylor, Jordan Smith, Brian Harman, Patrick Rodgers, Aldrich Potgieter, Ricky Castillo, Matti Schmid, Jackson Koivun.
Koivun’s rapid rise adds another compelling storyline to the FedEx Cup playoffs. After turning professional only recently, the 21-year-old now has an opportunity to compete alongside the PGA Tour’s biggest names.
