What is the format for the 2024 Tour Championship?

The Tour Championship is finally here. After 36 PGA Tour events, the top 30 golfers will compete in the final tournament of the season.

Since this is the last tournament of the season, it is aptly named the Tour Championship. Who wins the event remains to be seen, but due to its significance, the tournament has a unique format. Here's what you need to know.

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2024 Tour Championship Format Explored

The format for the Tour Championship is similar to most other golf tournaments on the PGA Tour, with the exception of the Zurich Classic. It's a 72-hole stroke play event played over four days, just like the players have competed all year long.

There is one caveat, though. The scores are staggered before the tournament begins. The playoffs start with 70 players, and 50 of them advance to the next week. The final 30 qualify for the Tour Championship. Once these 30 players are established, they receive a point boost based on their previous performance.

The top player, in this case, Scottie Scheffler, starts the tournament at -10. Before he even hits a shot on Thursday, he's 10 under par due to his high ranking on the FedEx Cup points list.

The rest of the players, except for those ranked 26 through 30, have a smaller stroke advantage. This advantage decreases as the ranking goes down, giving Scheffler and other top-ranked players a significant head start.

Here's how it works out this weekend:

Starting Rank	Opening Score to Par	Player
No. 1	10 under	Scottie Scheffler
No. 2	8 under	Xander Schauffele
No. 3	7 under	Hideki Matsuyama
No. 4	6 under	Keegan Bradley
No. 5	5 under	Ludvig Aberg
No. 6	4 under	Rory McIlroy
No. 7	4 under	Collin Morikawa
No. 8	4 under	Wyndham Clark
No. 9	4 under	Sam Burns
No. 10	4 under	Patrick Cantlay
No. 11	3 under	Sungjae Im
No. 12	3 under	Sahith Theegala
No. 13	3 under	Shane Lowry
No. 14	3 under	Adam Scott
No. 15	3 under	Tony Finau
No. 16	2 under	Byeong Hun An
No. 17	2 under	Viktor Hovland
No. 18	2 under	Russell Henley
No. 19	2 under	Akshay Bhatia
No. 20	2 under	Robert MacIntyre
No. 21	1 under	Billy Horschel
No. 22	1 under	Tommy Fleetwood
No. 23	1 under	Sepp Straka
No. 24	1 under	Mathieu Pavon
No. 25	1 under	Taylor Pendrith
No. 26	Even	Chris Kirk
No. 27	Even	Tom Hoge
No. 28	Even	Aaron Rai
No. 29	Even	Christiaan Bezuidenhout
No. 30	Even	Justin Thomas

This means that everyone is chasing Scheffler. They've been doing that metaphorically in tournaments all season since he's been the top contender more often than not, but now they are actually, literally, chasing him.

Sam Burns, for instance, would need to outscore Scheffler by seven strokes to win the Tour Championship. Even if he surpasses Scheffler's total, he must still overcome the existing points gap.

Sam Burns starts the Tour Championship four under (Image via Getty)

It’s similar to seeding in other sports. In the NFL playoffs, the top seed enjoys the advantage of a bye week and home-field advantage. Golf is unique in that the advantage is reflected directly on the scoreboard.

Scheffler has a headstart, but Xander Schauffele is close behind at eight under. Hideki Matsuyama and Keegan Bradley, fresh off wins at the FedEx St. Jude Championship and the BMW Championship, are at seven and six under par, respectively.