Christiaan Bezuidenhout didn’t win The American Express but it was a prosperous event for the South African.
With amateur Nick Dunlap prevailing, Bezuidenhout, per PGA Tour rules, collected first-place money as runner-up. And while the 500 FedExCup points weren’t doled out to anyone (Dunlap is a non-member), Bezuidenhout did collect 300 points for his solo second. That was enough to lock up at least one signature-event start.
The Aon Swing 5 is one of the ways players can earn spots into signature events. The top five points earners between signature stretches get spots in the next set of signature events. The top five in aggregate points from the Sony Open, American Express and the upcoming Farmers Insurance Open will qualify for the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.
The Genesis Invitational will factor in those three full-field tournaments along with the WM Phoenix Open, which bisects Pebble and Riviera.
Sony Open winner Grayson Murray still leads the way in the standings, which is higher priority than tournament winners. He’s a lock to qualify for Pebble, as is Bezuidenhout.
Here’s a look at the top 5 with one more event to be played before the second signature event of the season:
AON SWING 5 AFTER AMEX:
1. Grayson Murray, 500 (not in Farmers field)
2. Christiaan Bezuidenhout, 300 (IN)
3. Justin Thomas, 145 (OUT)
4. Kevin Yu, 145 (IN)
5. Carl Yuan, 122.5 (IN)
—
Michael Kim, 102.217 (IN)
Matthieu Pavon, 98.563 (IN)
Keith Mitchell, 98.417 (IN)
The Aon Next 10 are the top 10 player in the FedExCup standings who aren’t already qualified for the upcoming signature events. For Pebble and Riviera, the Aon Next 10 was locked in after the fall series. However, for the Arnold Palmer Invitational and The Players, the Aon Next 10 will pull from this year’s FedExCup points.
AON NEXT 10 FOR PEBBLE, GENESIS
Beau Hossler
Ludvig Åberg
Ben Griffin
Taylor Montgomery
Matt Kuchar
Nick Hardy
J.J. Spaun
Sam Ryder
Luke List
Alex Smalley
