Keegan Bradley dubs Tour Championship format 'little clunky' amid potential changes

The PGA Tour is reportedly planning to change the Tour Championship’s format. According to reports from The Athletic and The Associated Press, the Tour officials are in discussion to replace the current staggered-start format for its FedExCup playoff finale with a “bracket-style event.” While the report garnered some mixed reactions, Keegan Bradley has come forward to back it.

Bradley claimed that he’d only just heard about the potential changes. However, the 38-year-old stated that he agrees with the move. Interestingly, the PGA Tour star dubbed the event’s current format a ‘little clunky.’ The ace golfer addressed the current system’s drawback and said the officials were ‘trying to create drama in the last event of the year’ with the ‘strange’ system.

The Ryder Cup skipper went on to clear that he ‘thankfully’ doesn’t have a say in the official matter.

Speaking to reporters on Friday at Kapalua, Keegan Bradley said, as quoted by ASAP Sports:

“I do know that the format now I think is a little clunky. I think it’s a little strange. There’s no right or wrong way. They’re trying to create drama in the last event of the year, and you got guys like Scottie Scheffler who, you know, if they don’t do something like that, wouldn’t have to even play that week and you win the FedExCup. So, I’m not in a position, thankfully, to make those [changes], but I’m all for trying to make the Tour better.”

Furthermore, Bradley added that a head-to-head showdown format would be ‘certainly interesting.’

Replying to a media suggestion about a possible match play format being introduced, he said:

“I think that would be certainly interesting, because the pressure that you would feel at the Tour Championship, if you’re going to win the FedExCup and win whatever amount of money is at stake, that’s real pressure. So, to watch two guys go out and play for it would be pretty cool.”

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PGA Tour cosider bracket format for Tour Championship: Reports

According to reports, PGA Tour officials are planning to introduce “bracket-style event” for the Tour Championship at East Lake. The AP claimed that the circuit was considering ‘several concepts’, but was “leaning” toward a seeded match-play bracket system. However, the decision is not official and the Tour’s Player Advisory Council has yet to see any proposals.

For the unversed, Medal match play is a format, like head-to-head, where competitors play 18 holes and the lowest stroke-play score wins the match. This format is most prominently used at the NCAA Division II Championship and other college events.

It is pertinent to note that the Tour first moved the 30-man Tour Championship to a staggered start in 2019. The move also rewarded the FedExCup No. 1 by letting them begin the week at East Lake at 10 under. Interestingly, the current reports claiming a possible change in the move comes after reigning champion Scottie Scheffler dubbed the existing format “silly.”