Miles Bennett
Golf playoffs are a way to decide a winner in the event of a tie. The most common playoff format is sudden death, where tied participants play one extra hole at a time, with those still tied moving on to the next hole until a winner is determined. The aggregate playoff is the oldest playoff format, with the lowest cumulative score in a series of holes, most commonly three, four, or eighteen holes. This is considered the fairest way of deciding a winner, as one bad shot does not eliminate all chances of winning. The FedExCup Playoffs, for example, are a series of three events that determine the FedExCup champion, with the top 70 players in the FedExCup standings eligible to compete for their share of the $100 million total in bonus money.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Playoff format in stroke play tournaments | Sudden death (most common), aggregate playoff |
| Playoff format in match play tournaments | Sudden death |
| Number of holes in sudden death | One extra hole at a time until a winner is determined |
| Number of holes in aggregate playoff | 3, 4, 18 or 36 |
| Playoff format used in men's major championships | 18-hole (or 36-hole) format |
| Playoff format used in the U.S. Open | Two-hole aggregate playoff |
| Playoff format used in the Open Championship | Four-hole aggregate playoff |
| Playoff format used in the PGA Championship | Three-hole playoff (previously sudden death and 18-hole format) |
| Playoff format used in the Women's Open, U.S. Senior Open, and U.S. Senior Women's Open | Three-hole playoff (previously two-hole and 18-hole playoff) |
| Playoff format used in the Masters Tournament | 18-hole format (changed to sudden death in 1976) |
| Number of events in the FedExCup Playoffs | 3 (previously 4) |
| Number of players eligible for the FedExCup Playoffs | Top 70 players in the FedExCup standings |
| Number of players fully exempt for the following season | Top 50 players in the FedExCup standings |
| Number of FedExCup events in the 2025 Regular Season | 36 |
| Examples of FedExCup events | THE PLAYERS Championship, major championships, Signature Events |
| Golf clubs participating in the 2025 playoffs | Los Angeles Golf Club, The Bay, Atlanta Drive, and New York Golf Club |
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Playoff formats
The aggregate playoff is the oldest playoff format in stroke play tournaments and is considered the fairest way of deciding a winner, as it takes into account the cumulative score over a series of holes, usually three, four, or eighteen holes. The four men's major championships use this format. The Open Championship, for example, used an 18-hole playoff format until 1985 when it was reduced to four holes. The men's U.S. Open changed to a two-hole aggregate playoff in 2018.
Some tournaments, like the FedExCup Playoffs, feature a progressive cut, where the number of players is reduced at each event. The top 70 players in the FedExCup standings are eligible for the Playoffs, with the first event featuring 70 players, the second 50, and the final event 30. The FedExCup Playoffs consist of three events, down from four prior to 2019, and the champion takes home $10 million out of a total bonus pool of $100 million.
In some cases, a combination of formats is used. For instance, a full 18-hole playoff may be held the day after a tournament, and if there is still a tie, sudden death is played to determine the winner.
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Sudden death
A player who wins in matchplay after n playoff holes is said to have won "at the (18+n)th hole" or "(36+n)th hole" in the increasingly rare case of a 36-hole match. The first playoff in The Masters in 1935 was contested over 36 holes, when Gene Sarazen overcame Craig Wood. The Masters Tournament used the 18-hole format until 1976 (the first sudden-death playoff was in 1979). The Open Championship was the first major tournament to adopt the shortened aggregate playoff system when a 4-hole playoff was introduced in 1985.
The four men's majors originally used an 18-hole (or 36-hole) format. The men's U.S. Open changed in 2018 to a two-hole aggregate playoff. The Open Championship used this format until 1985, when it was reduced to four holes. The three-hole format is used for the men's PGA Championship (originally 18 holes, changed to sudden death in 1977, and adopted the three-hole format in 2000), The Players Championship, and the other three USGA-sanctioned tournaments for professionals, the U.S. Women's Open, U.S. Senior Open (both were 18-hole playoffs before shortened to three in 2007, and two in 2018), and the U.S. Senior Women's Open.
There have been a total of six, eight-hole, sudden-death playoffs in PGA Tour history. The most recent came in the previously mentioned battle between Harris English and Kramer Hickok in the 2021 Travelers Championship at TPC River Highlands. English bested Hickok with a birdie on the eighth hole after a very tight back and forth that saw both players having chances to win at different points.
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The FedExCup Playoffs
The FedExCup is a season-long points competition that runs from January to August and includes 36 official events, such as THE PLAYERS Championship, major championships, Signature Events, Full-Field Events, and Additional Events. Players earn FedExCup points based on their performance at each tournament, with an emphasis on wins and high finishes.
The top 70 players in the FedExCup standings qualify for the FedExCup Playoffs, which is a series of three events: the FedEx St. Jude Championship, the BMW Championship, and the TOUR Championship. The Playoffs feature a progressive cut, starting with 70 players in the first event, 50 in the second, and 30 in the final event, where the FedExCup champion will be determined. The FedExCup Playoffs finale, the TOUR Championship, features FedExCup Starting Strokes, a staggered, strokes-based system that recognises players for their performance during the Regular Season and the first two Playoffs events.
The FedExCup Bonus Distribution totals $100 million, with the FedExCup champion earning $10 million. The top 50 players in the FedExCup standings are fully exempt for the following season, including THE PLAYERS Championship and all eight Signature Events.
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Playoff history
Playoff formats in golf have varied over the years, with different tournaments adopting different systems. The most common playoff format in stroke play tournaments is sudden death, where tied participants play one extra hole at a time, with those still tied for the lowest score moving on to the next hole until a winner is determined. The 1976 Pepsi-Wilson Tournament on the Japan Golf Tour set a record for the longest sudden-death playoff on any men's professional tour, with Peter Thomson emerging victorious after 14 holes. The PGA Championship employed the sudden death format from 1977 to 1999, while The Masters Tournament used the 18-hole format until 1976, transitioning to sudden death in 1979.
The aggregate playoff, considered the oldest and fairest format in stroke play tournaments, has been used in the four men's major championships. This format determines the winner based on the lowest cumulative score over a series of holes, typically three, four, or eighteen holes. The Open Championship was the first major tournament to adopt a shortened aggregate playoff, introducing a 4-hole playoff in 1985, followed by the men's U.S. Open changing to a two-hole aggregate playoff in 2018.
The FedExCup Playoffs, established in 2007, is a season-long points competition that culminates in a series of three events to determine the FedExCup champion. The top 70 players in the FedExCup standings qualify for the Playoffs, competing for a share of the $100 million bonus money, with the FedExCup champion receiving $10 million. The Playoffs include the FedEx St. Jude Championship, BMW Championship, and TOUR Championship, with progressive cuts in the number of players advancing at each stage.
In 2025, the inaugural season of TGL, the Los Angeles Golf Club, The Bay, Atlanta Drive, and New York Golf Club competed in the playoffs. New York secured the final playoff spot with a victory over Boston Common Golf, setting up a Semifinal matchup against Los Angeles Golf Club.
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Playoff seeding
In golf, playoff seeding is particularly relevant in tournaments such as the PGA Tour FedExCup Playoffs and the TGL Playoffs. Here's how it works for these competitions:
PGA Tour FedExCup Playoffs Seeding:
The PGA Tour FedExCup is a season-long points competition that culminates in the FedExCup Playoffs. The FedExCup standings are based on players' performance throughout the regular season, with an emphasis on wins and high finishes. The top 70 players in the FedExCup standings qualify for the Playoffs.
The FedExCup Playoffs consist of three consecutive events: the FedEx St. Jude Championship, the BMW Championship, and the TOUR Championship. The number of players advancing to each stage decreases, creating a progressive cut.
For the FedEx St. Jude Championship, the top 70 players from the FedExCup standings are eligible. After this tournament, only the top 50 players advance to the BMW Championship. Finally, only the top 30 players from the BMW Championship progress to the TOUR Championship, where the FedExCup champion will be crowned.
TGL Playoffs Seeding:
The TGL (an apparent reference to the "Team Golf League") Playoffs feature a similar structure. The top four teams from the regular season advance to the playoffs. The teams are seeded based on their performance and standings at the end of the regular season.
In the example provided, Los Angeles Golf Club (LAGC) clinched the No. 1 seed, likely due to their strong performance, including back-to-back comeback wins. The Bay secured the No. 2 seed, Atlanta is the No. 3 seed, and New York Golf Club earned the No. 4 seed by defeating Boston Common Golf.
These seeding positions determine the matchups and brackets for the TGL Playoffs, which begin with single-elimination Semifinals followed by a "best-of-three" Finals Series.
In summary, playoff seeding in golf tournaments like the FedExCup and TGL Playoffs is based on regular-season performance and standings. The seeding determines the advancing teams or players, their matchups, and their path through the brackets to the championship.
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Frequently asked questions
Golf playoffs are a series of three events that determine the FedExCup champion. The top 70 players in the FedExCup standings are eligible to compete in the playoffs, which feature a progressive cut, with fields of 70 for the FedEx St. Jude Championship, 50 for the BMW Championship, and 30 for the TOUR Championship.
There are different formats for golf playoffs. The most common playoff format in stroke play tournaments is sudden death, where tied participants play one extra hole at a time, with those still tied for the lowest score moving on to the next hole until a winner is determined. Another format is the aggregate playoff, where the lowest cumulative score in a series of holes (commonly three, four, or eighteen) decides the winner.
Examples of golf playoffs include the FedExCup Playoffs, which include the FedEx St. Jude Championship, BMW Championship, and TOUR Championship. Other golf playoffs include the SoFi Cup, where the Los Angeles Golf Club clinched the No. 1 seed, and the PGA Championship, which used to have an 18-hole format but now features a three-hole playoff.
