The cup - Ryder Cup - is all the rage in St. Louis

What really gets Stricker's attention, though, is a tournament that doesn't pay a dime.

He was bumped out of the automatic qualifiers in the final week at the PGA Championship, then had to sweat it out over three weeks until Azinger called Stricker to tell him he was on the team.

"It feels like a huge weight has been lifted off me," he said. "I've been playing the last couple weeks with some extra pressure. Even though I've tried to not think about it too much, it's been there. It seems like every shot has counted a little more than normal, just because I didn't know if I was going to make the team."

The points structure for the FedEx Cup finale is being scrutinized, but it starts with Singh.

He had not won consecutive tournaments in four years, then ran off two in a row at the right time, just as Tiger Woods did a year ago when he demolished the field.

The only movement - besides Singh running away with it - has been lower-seeded players making huge strides with one big week and two made cuts, such as Kevin Sutherland and Tim Herron.

Still, the PGA Tour's hope was to give more guys a chance to win the $10 million prize.

"It's kind of funny that we made the system that was going to provide a lot of opportunities for players in the last week, and it looks like there's going to be fewer opportunities," Stricker said.

Padraig Harrington, a double major winner, might not make it to the Tour Championship unless he finishes fifth in the BMW Championship, which starts Thursday under the threat of rain. He has missed the cut the last two weeks, plunging from No. 4 to No. 44.

But even the Irishman understands the playoff system.

"I'd be more inclined if you miss the cut, go home, you're out," Harrington said. "I think I'm in a lucky position that I still have a chance at qualifying. This is the playoffs."

Not anymore. Singh has turned it into a one-man show.

The 45-year-old Fijian hasn't bothered to calculate what he has to do this week, and he is not interesting in listening when anyone tries to do the math for him. Singh just wants to keep playing the way he has since the beginning of August, with three victories in five starts.

"I'm going to go out there and play hard," Singh said. "It was a great win last week, but that was last week. This is a new week, new golf course, new conditions. So I've got to focus on this week and see what happens."