The FedEx Cup has changed its rulebook many times since it launched in 2007 with the $35 million bonus pool. But the spotlight only grows bigger as the PGA Tour heads towards full tour-tier restructuring in 2028, and the format is already facing fresh questions. Golf analyst Trey Wingo believes the FedEx season should reflect the same competitiveness the regular season is set to achieve, especially after Rory McIlroy gave us an example of the perfect loophole in the playoffs system last week.

Speaking on Wednesday’s episode of his podcast, Trey Wingo raised the issue using Rory McIlroy‘s underwhelming week in Memphis as his exhibit.

“Rory was towards the end of the field at the first playoff event, and he’s guaranteed all the way through. Now in a real playoff, whether it’s football or college football or baseball or the NBA or college basketball or hockey, no matter how good you are in the regular season, if you don’t show out in the playoffs, you are out.

“And I think one of the things, then again, there’s a whole bunch of stuff that’s going to be changing on the PGA Tour over the next 18 months. One of the things that would be fascinating to me is to say, ‘Okay, everybody inside the top 70 gets into the first event. Now, you’ve got to be inside this number to move on, and then you have to be inside that number to move on to the final event.'”

Some major changes that the PGA Tour introduced over the years include having staggered strokes at East Lake before moving to straight 72-hole stroke play in 2025. The FedEx Cup season also has shrunk the field, reshuffled point values, and reworked its format several times. But the playoff system is a chink in its armor.

Essentially, Wingo does not believe FedEx Cup playoffs currently function as true playoffs. Under the existing setup, a player’s regular-season points simply roll forward and stack on whatever they earn in the postseason. For example, a player who ends the regular season at the front can even have a poor exhibition in Round 1 of the playoffs and still advance to the next, just because the points they amassed in the regular season can sustain them to the final round, the Tour Championship. According to Wingo, that should be changed outright.

He believes each playoff event should have an independent cut-off for the next round and disregard regular-season performance. Wingo’s point is not a clash with the PGA Tour’s own expectations.

The Tour has rolled out a two-tier championship structure to be launched in 2028, designed to reward current form over accumulated status. Players in the junior Challenger Series will have to “earn” their way up to the Championship Series. By doing so, the Tour essentially promotes the idea of meritocracy. The FedEx season, however, does not currently reflect that.

“To me, that is way more compelling of a playoff, and it’s actually more of a true playoff as opposed to stacking this thing all the way through to the end based on what you did in January, February, March, and April,” Wingo added.

The current FedEx Cup system works on a stacking method. The regular season runs from January to August across 34 official events, and every point earned along the way carries straight into the playoffs. A win at a standard full-field event is worth 500 points. A win at one of the eight signature events is worth 700. The number jumps to 750 for a win at the majors or the Players Championship.

The advantage of the current system played out in view at the FedEx St. Jude Championship. Rory McIlroy shot his way to a tie for T-66, one of his worst weeks at the TPC Southwind in years. He still walked into the BMW Championship safely inside the top 13, all but guaranteed a Tour Championship spot.

That said, if the PGA Tour wants to emphasize players earning their way through each level, FedEx Cup playoffs could be the next place to face pressure to adopt a similar approach.

FedEx Cup Playoffs Give Stars Too Much Room for Error

Rory McIlroy’s woeful four-over par drew most attention in Memphis last week, but he is far from alone. Aaron Rai finished tied for 63rd at TPC Southwind, one of the rougher weeks of his year, but still advanced to the BMW Championship at No. 37 in the standings. Moreover, Alex Fitzpatrick, who tied for 61st in Memphis, sits comfortably at No. 20 heading into St. Louis.

Jordan Spieth, on the other hand, entered the week ranked 54th and played well. He opened with a bogey-free 65 and finished tied for 19th, but a shaky back nine on Sunday left him at number 52, two spots outside the cut. Max Homa also did not make it to the BMW Championship despite finishing T-24 in the FedEx St. Jude Championship.

Whether the Tour would actually adopt anything like this remains unclear, especially with the bigger two-tier restructuring already dominating the conversation for 2028. But the pattern at TPC Southwind, where three of the year’s more disappointing weeks still produce safe passage, gives a case for the real reset.