Playoff Beard in Full Gear

Embed from Getty Images

 by Roz Roberts III

Judging by the quality of his playoff beard, Michael Thompson is fully ready for the FedexCup Playoffs.  That's a good thing because they start tomorrow at the Fedex St. Jude Classic in Memphis, Tennessee.  The first event is open to the top 125 players in the FedexCup points list.  Michael currently sits at 103.  In order to advance to round two at the BMW Championship Michael will need a strong enough finish to move him up into the top 70.

Michael is grouped with Callum Tarren and Max McGreevy for the first two rounds.  They tee off from the 10th hole at 9:43am ET (8:43am in Memphis).

Online Links
Leaderboard
Michael's Scorecard

Michael's Group on Tourcast 3D

Thompson Puts It All Together

by Roz Roberts III

Michael Thompson finally put together a complete round in the Fedex Playoffs shooting a bogey free, five under par,  66 to finish the Deutsche Bank Championship in a tie for 53rd.  Only Justin Spieth had a better fourth round.  The strong finish guarantees Michael a spot in the third round of the Fedex Cup Playoffs - the BMW Championship.  It will be the first time that Michael has made it to the third round in the Playoff series.

Michael currently sits 63rd on the Fedex Cup Points list.  The top 70 golfers will play in the BMW Championship in two weeks.  In order to advance to the final round of the playoffs, the Tour Championship, Michael will need a strong finish at the BMW in order to climb into the top 30.  PGATour.com will likely post the necessary finish for each golfer to advance to the Tour Championship in a couple of days but Michael will most likely need something like a top 15 or better finish to climb into the top 30.

Thompson Makes The Cut at the Deutsche Bank Championship

by Randy Roberts

Michael Thompson made his first cut in the 2013 FedEx Cup playoffs! By making the cut, he has given himself a great shot at making it into the next round of the FedEx Cup playoffs, the BMW Championship.

His round started off with a little bit of a roller coaster as he went bogey,birdie, bogey, birdie but then he settled in, scoring 3 more birdies along the way. Those were offset by two bogeys to finish at -1 and T-67.

For Sunday's round 3 he'll be paired with Jason Kokrak and they'll be getting an early start at 7:45 am.

To keep an eye on his FedEx Cup ranking, you can view the Projected FedEx Cup Points List. It will update during the round to show where he would place based on the current standings of the ongoing tournament. In order to get into the BMW championship he'll need to finish in the top 70. As he begins on Sunday, he'll be ranked #69.

Leaderboard
Online Links
Leaderboard
Michael's Scorecard
Michael on Shot Tracker
Michael's Group on Shot Tracker

Playoff Round Two Gets Started at The Deutsche Bank Championship

by Roz Roberts III

After a tough second round last week at the Barclay's which resulted in a missed cut, Michael Thompson will be looking to rebound at the Deutsche Bank Championship.  Last week's missed cut dropped Michael to 58th on the Fedex Cup points list.  Only the top 70 players on that list will advance to the third round of the playoffs at the BMW Championship in a couple of weeks.

A rebound is not without precedent this year.   The last time Michael finished last of those who completed two rounds to miss a cut (the Northern Trust Open), he followed that performance with his first victory on the PGA Tour at the Honda Classic.

Michael will be playing with Angel Cabrera and Ryan Palmer for the first two rounds.  They tee off FRIDAY  at 7:52am ET from the first hole.

Online Links
Leaderboard
Michael's Scorecard
Michael on Shot Tracker
Michael's Group on Shot Tracker

It's Playoff Time!

by Randy Roberts

Michael Thompson has made the trek out to Liberty National Golf Club in Jersey City, New Jersey to play in the first round of the 2013 FedEx Cup Playoffs, otherwise known as "The Barclays".  The playoff system consists of four weeks of events with ever decreasing fields in order to determine the ultimate FedEx Cup playoff champion.  Here's a quick rundown on the events:

Top 125 - The Barclays
Top 100 - Deutsche Bank Championship
Top 70 - BMW CHampionship
Top 30 - Tour Championship

You can follow the projected FedEx Cup points list at the link below.

2013 Live Projected FedEx Cup Points List

When you look at the list, keep in mind that each event in the playoffs is worth five times that of a normal PGA event, thus players can rocket up the points list with a good performance.

Michael will be grouped with Angel Cabrera and Roberto Castro and will be teeing off at 12:33 ET.

Leaderboard
Scorecard
Michael's ShotTracker
Group ShotTracker
@Live streaming coverage

Another Top 25 for Thompson Heading Into the Playoffs

by Roz Roberts III

For the second time this year, Michael Thompson posted a top 25 finish at a major championship. Earlier this year he finished tied for 25th at the Masters.  This week he finished in a tie for 22nd after a one under par 69 in the final round of the PGA Championship to finish even for the tournament.

Based on the results this week, he moves up to 36th on the Fedex Cup playoff list.  The playoffs start in two weeks at the Barclays for the top 125 players in Fedex Cup points.

The points requirements to qualify for each of the playoff tournaments are as follows:

Top 125 - The Barclays
Top 100 - Deutsche Bank Championship
Top 70 - BMW CHampionship
Top 30 - Tour Championship

2013 Live Projected FedEx Cup Points List

Each playoff event is worth five times the points of a normal PGA Tournament so even though Michael has a good start on Fedex Points he'll need to play well in the playoffs to continue to advance with the ultimate goal of making it to the Tour Championship which is reserved for the top 30 golfers.

Into the Second Round

by Roz Roberts III

The greens at The Barclay's over the weekend hardened and sped up and scores, especially those later in the day, went up.   Michael Thompson had a difficult time on the greens int he third and fourth round and eventually finished in a tie for 63rd.  He dropped from 66th on the Fedexcup Points List to number 82 but, more importantly, being inside the top 100 gets him into next week's Deutschebank Championship.  This will mark the first time Michael will play at the Deutschebank.

PGATour.com has a nice playoff tracker page that shows the entire field eligible for next week's Deutschebank Championship and the movement within the Fedexcup Points List over each of the playoff events.  You can find it here:  Playoffs Tracker.

Since each playoff event is worth 5 times a regular season event,  there is quite a bit of volatility in the standings after each playoff event.  After next week's second round, the third round will be limited to the top 70 players on the points list.  In order to advance, Michael will need a top 50 finish (or thereabouts).

Moving On Up

by Roz Roberts III

If the old golf adage that "golf is much easier and enjoyable from the short grass" is true, then Michael Thompson had a great time during Friday's second round at the Barclay's.  Michael hit 13 out of 14 fairways on the difficult Black Course at Bethpage State Park and managed to shoot a three under par 68.  He moved up 36 spots on the leaderboard and is now tied for 16th at three under par - just five shots off the lead.   For the tournament, Michael is now tied for second in driving accuracy

Michael's third round featured six birdies including one on the second hole where he sank a 39'9" putt.    Golf writer Doug Ferguson described the 7:30am scene on Twitter:

Michael Thompson makes 40-foot birdie on 2. No fans around green. One marshal claps. Other 6 marshals busy taking pictures.

Tee Times
For the third round, Michael will be paired with Ian Poulter.  The duo tees off at 12:25pm ET.

Television and Streaming Coverage
Saturday's third round coverage will be aired on the Golf Channel and CBS and the PGATour.com's Live@ stream will showing the 13th and 17th holes.

Round 3 Coverage

Golf Channel - Saturday 1pm-2:30pm ET
CBS - Saturday 3pm-6pm ET
Live @ - Saturday 11am - 6pm ET

Online Scoring Links
Leaderboard
Michael on Shottracker
Michael's Group on Shottracker
Michael's Scorecard

Thompson Hangs Tough

Michael Thompson makes a par putt on the 13th hole during round 1 of the 2012 Barclay's

by Roz Roberts III

Michael Thompson fought Bethpage Black to a draw on Thursday during the first round of the Barclay's.  His even par 71 included two birdies, two bogeys, and 14 pars.  He is currently tied for 52nd.  Michael's par 71 looks even more impressive when you consider that the afternoon conditions scored over one and a half shots higher than the morning rounds when the winds were down and the greens were more receptive.

Michael will once again be paired with Charlie Hoffman and Geoff Ogilvy.  The group tees off at 7:21am ET and hope that round one's early scoring conditions repeat themselves on Friday.

Television and Streaming Coverage
Friday's second round coverage will be aired on the Golf Channel and streamed on PGATour.com.

Round 2 Coverage

Golf Channel - Friday 2pm-6pm ET
Live @ - Friday 11am - 6pm ET

Online Scoring Links
Leaderboard
Michael on Shottracker
Michael's Group on Shottracker
Michael's Scorecard

Are You Ready for Some Playoffs?!

by Roz Roberts III

This time last year, Michael Thompson had just snuck into the top 125 PGA Tour golfers on the Fedexcup Points list which gained him entry into the first round of the Fedexcup Playoffs - The Barclay's.  This year, after his second place finish at the US Open, his entry into the playoffs was assured early and he's now looking to make a deeper run into the four event playoff series.

Each round of the playoffs will shrink the number of eligible players until the final round Tour Championship when the number 1 player will receive $10 million.  This week marks the first round of the playoffs and is open to the top 125 players on the Fedexcup points list.  Next week's Deutschebank Championship is limited to the top 100 players.  The field will shrink to 70 at the BMW Championship and the final round Tour Championship will be limited to the top 30 players.  The points available at each of the playoff events are five times that of a normal event so performing well in the early rounds of the playoffs will allow players to move up the list and continue on.  Michael currently sits at 66 on the points list.

This year the Barclay's will be played at the famed Black Course at Bethpage State Park in New York.  The Black Course hosted both the 2002 and 2009 US Opens and boasts perhaps the most daunting sign in golf:

Michael will be playing the first two rounds of the Barclay's with Charlie Hoffman and Geoff Ogilvy.  The group tees off at 12:11pm ET.

Television and Streaming Coverage
The the first two rounds of the Barclay's will be available on the Golf Channel and the weekend will be covered by both the Golf Channel and CBS.  All four rounds will have live streaming provided by the PGATour.com's Live@ stream.

Round 1 Coverage

Golf Channel - Thursday 2pm-6pm ET
Live @ - Thursday 11am - 6pm ET

Online Scoring Links
Leaderboard
Michael on Shottracker
Michael's Group on Shottracker

Missed It By That Much

by Randy Roberts

With the low scores posted on the first day at the Barclays, Michael Thompson knew going into today's second round that he would have to go low to make it past the cut.  Going low is exactly what he did early on.  Getting off to a hot start, he scored 5 birdies by the 12th hole giving him an overall score of -4 and safely within the cut which was at -3 at the time.  Bogies on 13 and 17 tempered the hot streak and left him one shot shy of the cut line going into the driveable par 4, hole #18.  His drive landed just short of the green and his second shot landed 13'-8" away from the hole.

It was as Yogi Berra would say "deja-vu all over again".  For the second week in a row he was left with a long birdie putt, one shot shy of the cut line.  Michael came up big again, draining the long birdie putt jumping back to -3 which was just above the cut line.  Alas, it was not to be.  As the day wore on, the rest of the field also posted low scores.  For much of the day, -3 held as the cut line.  In the afternoon it moved to -4.  With hope fading, it then moved back to -3 before finally settling in at -4.

Having missed the cut, Michael won't be playing during tomorrow's third and final round.  With hurricane Irene closing in on the course, the PGA has decided to shorten the Barclays to a 54 hole event.The missed cut is also projected to drop Michael to 115th on the FedEx Cup points list.  That means he won't get to play in the second round of the playoffs next week.  

On the positive side, he and his wife Rachel will get a chance to spend several weeks at home, which hasn't really happened since the season began.  He'll get a chance to recharge the batteries while the playoffs play out, then he'll be back at it for the Fall season at the end of September.  The fall season includes four tournaments starting with the Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals for Children Open in Las Vegas, NV.  The four tournaments will be his last chance to improve upon his position on the money list before the season ends. He'll be trying to stay above the magical 125th line beyond which Tour Cards for the next year are given out.

Update: With the Barclays over, we can report that Michael didn't lose any ground on the money list where he stands at 112.  Since only the top 100 on the FedEx list continue in next week's playoffs, it looks like only Ernie Els and William McGirt could pass him at 112.  That means worse case is that he'll start the fall season at about 114. 

Round Two Scoring Links

by Roz Roberts III

Michael Thompson finished off round 1 at the Barclays with a score of one over par (72) which has him outside the current cut line that is currently sitting at -1.  If round two scores are similar to round one then the cut line may move to -2.  The following online links can be used to follow Michael's second round online.

Online Scoring Links
Leaderboard
Michael Thompson Scorecard
Michael Thompson Shot Tracker
Michael Thompson's Group on Shot Tracker
Shot Tracker Leaderboard

Round One Weather Delay Just the Beginning?

Michael Thompson watches his second shot on the par five 16th hole during his first round at the Barclays.

by Roz Roberts III

Round one of the Barclays experienced a three hour weather delay during the morning.  If hurricane Irene doesn't change course soon, that may just be a warm up.  Many players who teed off in the afternoon were unable to complete their rounds before darkness put an end to golf for the day.  Michael Thompson was able to get through 13 holes before the horn blew.  He currently sits at even par and will continue his round from the par five fifth hole at 7:15am ET.  Michael hasn't seen red numbers yet but every time he's had a bogey to get to one over par, he's followed the bogey with a birdie to get back to even.  Through the first 13 holes, Michael's had three bogeys and three birdies (two of them in bounce-back fashion which is defined as a birdie immediately following an over par hole).

For Michael, and anyone else ranked #101 or higher, the stakes for making the cut are clear - make the cut or your playoff season has ended.  Right now, Michael sits one shot outside the cut but with 23 holes to go he's got plenty of time to make a move.

After Michael finishes his first round he won't have much of a break before his second round gets underway at 9:13am ET.

Video Coverage
In addition to traditional television coverage, the PGA Tour's website will be streaming live video coverage from the Barclays.

Live@ Streaming Schedule

Live@ Channel     11:00am - 6:00pm ET for all four rounds

Traditional Video Schedule:

Day    Date    Network    Time
FRI    8/26    GOLF    3 - 6 PM ET
SAT    8/27    GOLF    1 - 2:30 PM ET
SAT    8/27    CBS    3 - 6 PM ET
SUN    8/28    GOLF    12 - 1:30 PM ET
SUN    8/28    CBS    2 - 6 PM ET

Expected Weather
As hurricane Irene gets closer to the East Coast, the more dire the predictions for Saturday afternoon and all of Sunday.   The PGA had quietly been preparing players to stay through Tuesday as play may not be possible on Sunday or Monday.

Friday's Forecast


Mostly Sunny

High:   86°
Chance of Rain:  10%
Wind:  ENE at 5 mph
Mostly sunny skies. Winds light and variable.

Online Scoring Links
Leaderboard
Michael Thompson Scorecard
Michael Thompson Shot Tracker
Michael Thompson's Group on Shot Tracker
Shot Tracker Leaderboard

Playoff Season is Upon Us

by Roz Roberts III

Thursday marks the start of the PGA Tour's Fedexcup playoff season, as the Barclays gets under way in Edison, New Jersey.  This is just the fifth year of the Fedexcup Playoffs but in that short amount of time the playoffs have started to turn doubters into believers.  Intriguing storylines, large purses at the four playoff events (the Barclays, the Deutsce Bank Championship,  the BMW Championship, and the Tour Championship) and a $10 million dollar bonus to the #1 player at the end of the Tour Championship have contributed to interest from fans and players alike.

Michael Thompson currently sits at #107 but that doesn't mean he can't be #1 at the end of the playoffs.  The points system is structured such that any of the 125 competitors in the first round could potentially claim the $10 million dollar prize.  Two years ago, Heath Slocum started the playoffs as #124 but a win at the Barclays launched him all the way up to #8.

The second event of the playoff series, the Deutsche Bank Championship, is limited to the top 100 players on the points list so all of the players currently sitting outside of the top 100 need make the cut this week or their playoff season is over.  Based on the PGA Tour's current playoff scenarios, a top 52 finish will ensure Michael's playoff push continues at least one more event.

A first round weather delay has pushed Michael's first round start time back to 4:13pm ET from the tenth hole.  He will be playing with Kevin Stadler (#105) and Chris Stroud (#106) for the first two rounds.


Video Coverage
In addition to traditional television coverage, the PGA Tour's website will be streaming live video coverage from the Barclays.

Live@ Streaming Schedule

Live@ Channel     11:00am - 6:00pm ET for all four rounds

Traditional Video Schedule:

Day    Date    Network    Time
THU    8/25    GOLF    3 - 6 PM ET
FRI    8/26    GOLF    3 - 6 PM ET
SAT    8/27    GOLF    1 - 2:30 PM ET
SAT    8/27    CBS    3 - 6 PM ET
SUN    8/28    GOLF    12 - 1:30 PM ET
SUN    8/28    CBS    2 - 6 PM ET

Expected Weather
The weather is expected to be a large part of the Barclays story as hurricane Irene is expected to slam into the eastern seaboard later this weekend.    The PGA had quietly been preparing players to stay through Tuesday as play may not be possible on Sunday or Monday.

Afternoon thunderstorms are possible on Thursday.  Weather has already caused a delay during the morning rounds of round 1.

Thursday's Forecast

Afternoon Thunder-Storms
High :  87°
Chance of Rain:  50%
Wind:  SSW at 15 mph
Partly cloudy early followed by scattered thunderstorms in the afternoon. A few storms may be severe.

Online Scoring Links
Leaderboard
Michael Thompson Scorecard
Michael Thompson Shot Tracker
Michael Thompson's Group on Shot Tracker
Shot Tracker Leaderboard

Playoff Bound!

by Roz Roberts III

It's official!  Michael Thompson, along with 10 other rookies, has had a strong enough season to earn entry into the 2011 Fedexcup Playoffs that start next week at the Barclays!  The field was made official at the end of the Wyndham Championship this weekend.  Michael finished with a two under par 68 in the final round and finished the tournament at nine under par.  That was good enough to finish in a tie for 25th.  The solid weekend performance moved him up on the Fedexcup points list three spots to #107. 

Just getting into the playoffs gives a player a chance to move up the points list dramatically since each of the playoff events are worth 2500 points (roughly the equivalent of five regular season events).  As the Fedexcup Playoffs advance, the fields are limited to smaller and smaller fields.  The four playoff events are held in four consecutive weeks start next week with the Barclays at the Plainfield Country Club in Edison, New Jersey.


The point level cutoffs for each week of the playoffs are shown below.

Top 125: The Barclays
Top 100:  Deutsche Bank Championship
Top 70:  BMW Championship
Top 30:  TOUR Championship

Late Birdie Leads to Some "Friday Fist Pumping"

by Roz Roberts III

It came down to the final shot of the round.  Michael Thompson was sitting over a 12 foot birdie putt and sat one shot outside the cut line at the Wyndham Championship.  For Michael, the stakes were high:  make the putt and play the weekend for a paycheck and all but guarantee a spot in next week's Barclays - the first event in the Fedexcup Playoffs; miss the putt and spend the weekend at home, watching the tournament on TV, and hoping his accumulated Fedexcup points were enough to keep him in the top 125 in order to play next week.

Michael drained the putt and threw a couple of fist pumps.  After the round, Michael said "I fought hard today and it paid off. (I) made a great birdie on my last hole to make the cut on the number! Huge! Excited to play tomorrow..."

The day didn't get off to a good start.  A double bogey on his first hole (hole #10) put Michael in serious jeopardy of missing the cut early and it got worse with a bogey on hole #14.  Scores all day had been low and the cut line looked to be set fairly solidly at -2.  Michael started the day at -2 and after his first five holes, he was three shots off the cut.  Michael rallied with birdies on four of the next seven holes moved him a shot inside the cut line.  However, a bogey at hole #5 left him needing one more birdie with four holes to go.  Three consecutive pars left Michael one final hole and he was one shot short of the cut.  A solid drive and good approach left him with the aforementioned 12 foot putt.

Since Michael just made the cut and he had an afternoon tee time on Friday,  he'll have a nice early tee time on Saturday.  He'll be teeing off at 8:39am ET with Briny Baird.

Expected Weather for Saturday's Third Round

High: 91°
Chance of Rain: 30%
Wind: ENE at 4 mph

Isolated thunderstorms in the morning, becoming mostly sunny late. High 91F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 30%.

Television Schedule

Sat, 8/20: CBS 3p - 6p ET

Sun, 8/21: CBS 3p - 6p ET

Online Scoring Links
Leaderboard
Michael Thompson Scorecard
Michael Thompson Shot Tracker
Michael Thompson's Group on Shot Tracker
Shot Tracker Leaderboard

One Last Push to Make the Playoffs

PING Pro Michael Thompson warming up on the practice tee at the Wyndham Championship with his S56 irons.
Photo and caption by @PingTour on Twitter

by Roz Roberts III

This week's Wyndham Championship marks the last event of the 2011 PGA Tour "regular" season.  It is the last chance for Tour players to earn a place in the Fedexcup Playoffs which start next week at the Barclays Classic.  In order to grab one of the playoff spots, a player needs to be in the top 125 on the Fedexcup Points List.  Michael Thompson sits at spot #110 heading which puts him in the "playoff bubble" which is generally considered from spots #110 to #140.

According to The Asbury Park Press' Stephen Edelson, Michael needs to finish in the top 60 of this week's event to guarantee himself a spot in next week's playoffs (see full article here:  Tour Drama).

In what might be Michael's best threesome of the year, he'll be playing the first two rounds with fellow Hooters Tour alums Chad Campbell (#75 on the Fedexcup Points List)  and Brendon de Jonge (#48).  The group tees off from the first hole on Thursday at 8:10am.

The Sedgefield Country Club in Greensboro, North Carolina will once again host this year's Whyndham Championship. The course ranked 45th out of 52 in difficulty on the PGA Tour last year.

Expected Weather for Round 1

Isolated Afternoon Thunder Storms

Expected High:  87°

Chance of Rain:  30%

Wind:  SSW at 7 mph

Television Schedule

Thu, 8/18: GOLF 3p - 6p ET

Fri, 8/19: GOLF 3p - 6p ET

Sat, 8/20: CBS 3p - 6p ET

Sun, 8/21: CBS 3p - 6p ET

Online Scoring LInks
Leaderboard
Michael Thompson Scorecard
Michael Thompson Shot Tracker
Michael Thompson's Group on Shot Tracker
Shot Tracker Leaderboard