Tiger Woods, Fedex Cup | featured news

As the playoffs for the FedEx Cup get under way Thursday at The Barclays, the buzz is bigger than usual. Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy playing in the same group for starters, and at Bethpage Black, a notoriously tough track on Long Island made even more famous by the two U.S. Opens it has hosted in the last decade.

There is no recession for Tiger Woods. Our calculations show that the $10 million bonus Woods earned for the FedEx Cup title nudged him over the $1 billion mark in career earnings. Forbes has been tracking athlete earnings since before Tiger turned pro in 1996.

In a riveting conclusion to golf's regular season, its two biggest stars shared the stage. Phil Mickelson capped off a tumultuous summer at home with a spectacular rally to win the Tour Championship, while Tiger Woods finished another big year by winning the FedEx Cup and its $10 million bonus.