Scheffler bemoans 'silly' playoff format

Scottie Scheffler is the favorite to win the FedEx Cup Playoffs, but he isn't a fan of the PGA TOUR's end-of-season format.

"I talked about it the last few years. I think it's silly," Scheffler said Wednesday, according to Barstool Sports' Dan Rapaport.

"You can't call it a season-long race and have it come down to one tournament. Hypothetically, we get to East Lake and my neck flares up and it doesn't heal the way it did at The Players, I finish 30th in the FedEx Cup because I had to withdraw from the last tournament? Is that really the season-long race? No. It is what it is."

Scheffler, the world's No. 1 ranked player, has put together another dominant campaign with six victories, including the Masters and The Players Championship. He enters the playoffs with a significant lead in points accrued this season.

The top 70 players on the points list qualify for the playoffs, and the field gets smaller in each of the three events to close out the season. By the time of the TOUR Championship at East Lake, only 30 players have a chance to win.

The TOUR has used a staggered leaderboard for its finale in recent years to favor the players atop the standings, but Scheffler still doesn't think it's an adequate ending to the calendar.

"It's a fun tournament," he said. "I don't really consider it the season-long race like I think the way it's called. But you've got to figure out a way to strike a balance between it being a good TV product and it still being a season-long race. Right now, I don't know exactly how the ratings are or anything like that, but I know for a fact you can't really quite call it a season-long race when it comes down to one stroke-play tournament on the same golf course each year."

Scheffler finished in a tie for sixth at East Lake last season despite starting the tournament in the top spot.