As is known, the top 70 players in the FedExCup rankings after this week’s Wyndham Championship will make it to the FedEx St. Jude Championship. That leaves plenty of players on the bubble, including Jason Day, as well as Brooks Koepka. In Koepka’s case, that has partially to do with his LIV past and his less-than-admirable performances this season. But is he even eligible to make the playoffs at all, given his past with LIV?

In simplest terms, he is. There’s just one aspect of it that the PGA Tour controls and it concerns the bonus offered during the playoffs. During Koepka’s return to the PGA Tour, the tour brought forward a Returning Member Program. This program imposed some restrictions on Koepka, including that no matter how many event he plays, he will be ineligible to receive a share of the FedExCup Bonus Program. Players are awarded from a pool of $100 million after the BMW Championship. But the PGA Tour doesn’t bar him from playing in the playoffs.

So, what’s stopping him? Well, it’s precisely his performances.

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But can Koepka even make it to the playoffs? The straightforward answer is no, he cannot. Koepka is ranked 86th in the FedExCup rankings heading into the Wyndham Championship. He withdrew from last week’s Rocket Classic while dealing with a hand injury, never giving a specific reason for the withdrawal. However, the injury has been the clear complicating factor in his season. Koepka has been managing an ulnar-nerve issue that has affected the grip and sensation in his hand, keeping him out of contention on multiple occasions this year.

Despite the lingering injury, Koepka returns this week at the Wyndham Championship, the final event of the regular season, where a strong result is his only path into the top 70.

Things that might hold Koepka back

There are multiple players trying to make it into the playoffs who need similarly strong finishes at the Wyndham Championship, and the bubble this year is unusually crowded. On top of Koepka, players like Jason Day, who has qualified for 19 consecutive FedExCup playoffs, the longest active streak on Tour, need specific results to climb back into the top 70. Day, for instance, needs a two-way tie for 12th or better, per PGA Tour projections.

The competition is tough, and arguably tougher for Koepka given his season so far. He hasn’t recorded a top-10 finish since his tie for ninth at the Cognizant Classic. Considering a player of his caliber, climbing into position should, in theory, be within reach. But between the injury, the layoff, and the level of competition also fighting for the same handful of spots, it’s a tall task.

Though it sounds difficult, Koepka doesn’t really have an option but to finish as required, not just to make the playoffs this season, but to secure a place in next season’s lucrative events. As part of his agreement to return to the PGA Tour, Koepka is not eligible to receive a sponsor exemption into any of the signature events. That means he’ll need to finish inside the top 50 in the FedExCup standings to earn a place in those events, which, by extension, means he’ll need to play his way through the playoffs.

What happens if Koepka makes it to the first leg of the playoffs?

If Koepka does make it to the first leg of the playoffs next week, the field at the FedEx St. Jude Championship would expand to 71 players, a provision of the Returning Member Program built specifically to accommodate this scenario without bumping another player out of a spot they’d otherwise earned.

The answer plays out over four rounds at Sedgefield Country Club, with the Wyndham Championship running Thursday through Sunday, August 6-9. Whatever his position looks like when the final putt drops, the FedEx St. Jude Championship tees off the following week, August 13 at TPC Southwind in Memphis, either with Koepka in the field or without him.