The Northern Trust | Course Preview, Field, & What to Watch For

It’s playoff time in Boston. This week is the first leg of the FedEx Cup Playoffs, as TPC Boston will host the Northern Trust. 

A few years ago, the PGA TOUR changed the playoff format, reducing the amount of playoff tournaments from 4 to 3. TPC Boston held a permanent playoff tournament in the previous format, but in the new one, the tournament will flip from Boston to New York every other year. This year, it’s Boston’s turn. Justin Thomas will enter the playoffs ranked No. 1 in the standings, along with some of the biggest names in golf in the Top 10. Let’s dive in.

Course Preview

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TPC Boston is a fantastic example of New England golf. Winding through forests, elevation changes, and tall fescue scattered through the property. The Par 71 layout will play around 7,300 yards all week, but does not necessarily fit a certain player’s game. Accuracy players have won here, and bombers have won here.

This aspect of the course is so important for the playoffs, as everyone in the field should have a chance to win and move up the standings. TPC Boston was rejuvenated by course architect Gil Hanse in the early 2000s, and impressed critics immediately after the re-opening. The course features bentgrass greens, and most approach shots come from 175 yards and out. 

Field 

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Patrick Reed will tee off Thursday as the Northern Trust defending champion. His defense will be different from others, as he didn’t capture the title at this course last year. He won at Liberty National, but his game fits any course. He comes into this week playing good golf, with a solid performance at the PGA, and a sneaky T9 last week in Greensboro. He has great history here, including a T6 finish in 2017. 

Bryson DeChambeau could also be listed as a defending champion, as he was the last player to win a tournament at this venue. He won the 2018 Dell Technologies, and has only become a better player since. He has been in contention most weeks since the restart, including a Top 10 finish at the PGA Championship. He’s listed as the betting favorite for the week at +1100 (DraftKings)

Tiger Woods has played great golf at this course before. He won here in 2006, has finished tied for 2nd twice, and also finished solo 7th. He couldn’t get anything going on the greens at Harding Park, and was never able to gain any momentum. Tiger will be putting his ole’ trusty Scotty back in the bag this week so we’ll see if he performs any better on the greens. 

Justin Thomas enters the week ranked No. 1 in the FedEx Cup Standings. He, too, has won at this course before, winning back in 2017. He had an up and down PGA Championship, but won in Memphis just a week before. We will see what kind of form JT comes in with this week. Side note: JT and Tiger stopped by Winged Foot on Monday for a practice round on the way to Boston. 

What to Watch For 

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Rory McIlory has played interesting golf since the restart. He is making a lot of birdies, but a big score on each card is holding him back from getting into contention. He has won here before, 2012 and 2016, and seems to always crank it into another gear once the playoffs come around. If he can get rid of the big scores, he’ll be near the top of the leaderboard come Sunday afternoon. 

Kevin Kisner is one of my guys to watch this week. He is trending in the right direction: 29 to finish the WGC, solid performance at the PGA, and a T3 last week at the Wyndham. He has finished in the Top 25 here before, and combined that with his recent play, I expect another Top 20 finish from Kiz.

Keep an eye out for the guys that get hot with their long irons. There are a lot of longer approaches around this track, so the guys who control their long irons will be able to get into contention. 

Featured Groups 

Justin Thomas, Collin Morikawa, Webb Simpson (FedExCup Nos. 1-3)

Thursday: 8:26 a.m. ET (No. 10 tee); Friday: 1:06 p.m. ET (No. 1 tee)

Tiger Woods, Dylan Frittelli, Matthew Fitzpatrick (FedExCup Nos. 49-51)

Thursday: 8:37 a.m. ET (No. 10 tee); Friday: 1:17 p.m. ET (No. 1 tee)

Jon Rahm, Xander Schauffele, Lanto Griffin (FedExCup Nos. 10-12)

Thursday: 12:55 p.m. ET (No. 1 tee); Friday: 8:15 a.m. ET (No. 10 tee)

Bryson DeChambeau, Sungjae Im, Patrick Reed (FedExCup Nos. 4-6)

Thursday: 1:06 p.m. ET (No. 1 tee); Friday: 8:26 a.m. ET (No. 10 tee)

My Pick to Win 

I’m taking the Englishman Paul Casey. He comes into the week playing great golf, including a T2 at the PGA. He has fantastic history at this place, including a runner up finish to Rory McIlory in 2016.

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