Former Kansas golfer Gary Woodland says he needs ‘some rest’ after PGA season
Former University of Kansas golfer Gary Woodland on Sunday barely missed qualifying for the PGA Tour’s season-ending FedEx Cup Playoffs.
Woodland, 41, who placed 23rd in the Wyndham Championship — the final event of the regular season — finished 72nd in the FedEx Cup standings. The top 70 golfers in the standings qualify for golf’s playoffs, which begin with this week’s FedEx St. Jude Championship in Memphis.
After that tournament, the top 50 golfers in the FedEx Cup standings advance to the BMW Championship on Aug. 14-17 in Owings Hills, Maryland. Finally, the top 30 in the standings qualify for a spot in the Tour Championship Aug. 21-24 in Atlanta.
Golfers who finish 71 to 100 in the standings retain full PGA Tour status for 2026. Golfers who finish 101 to 125 will possess conditional status.
Scottie Scheffler won last year’s FedEx Cup playoffs, while Viktor Hovland won in 2023 and Rory McIlroy in 2022.
Woodland, who had surgery in September 2023 to remove a brain tumor, remains optimistic about his future in golf despite his failing to qualify for the playoffs.
“A lot of positives from this season,” Woodland, the 2019 U.S. Open winner, told golf.com after his final round at the Wyndham. “It stinks not to move on. But I’m excited for some rest. I need it. Rest up, spend time with the family, get a little healthier and then get ready for the Ryder Cup (where he is assistant captain to Keegan Bradley in September at Bethpage in New York).”
The 2007 KU graduate from Topeka told golf.com he’s still working on ways to calm his nervous system after pressure-packed rounds of golf on the tour.
“I ran out of gas (at Wyndham). I did. Credit to my caddie (Sunday). He was unbelievable. I told him before we started I was struggling. I had a rough night last night (Saturday), rough morning this morning. He did everything for me today. He led me around. I was just trying to hit the shots. I wasn’t enough in the end but credit to him. He carried me today,” Woodland said
Woodland said in retrospect he probably shouldn’t have played on the tour in 2024, so soon after surgery. He opened the 2025 season with three top-25 finishes and placed second at the Houston Open in March.
His strong showing last week assured his best finish in the FedEx Cup standings in five years.
“It was a good year in a lot of ways, but I have a long way to go in a lot of ways. The best parts of my game are in a really good spot and I’m happy with that,” Woodland said.
He grew emotional speaking with CBS’ Amanda Balionis after Sunday’s round.
“It’s been a hard year for me,” Woodland said. “It has been a long year for me. I’m tired. I need to get back into a dark room and just try to turn my brain off as much as I can. It has been hard. I am happy that I am playing well.”
In accepting the PGA Tour’s Courage Award back in February, he said: “At the end of the day, I’m fighting. The last thing I’m going to let this do is let this thing in my head stop my dreams, and that’s why I fight every day. I want to be there for my kids and my family, but I want to chase my dreams, too. I’ve got a lot of dreams out here.
“I’m starting to understand what I need to do every day to function in life, but the things I’m doing to help with my brain are also helping me play golf. And I’m knocking on the door. I know my game is close. It’s coming, and I’m going to keep knocking on that door until I bust through, and then we’ll see what happens.”
