Brandt Snedeker captures FedExCup, Tour Championship at East Lake

Coming into the Tour Championship, Brandt Snedeker’s 2012 had already been deemed a massive success. With a win early in the year at the Farmers Insurance Open, 6 top 10s, a spot on his first Ryder Cup team and over $ 3.5 million in season earnings in the bank, there wasn’t a whole lot left on his yearly checklist … except one thing.

That, of course, was winning the Tour Championship and the FedExCup at East Lake, an attainable feat so long as Snedker, who was fifth in the standings at the start of the tournament, found a way to pick up the biggest win of his career.

He managed to do just that on Sunday afternoon, capping off the round with a brilliant chip-in for birdie on the 17th hole to take a three-shot lead into the final hole. Despite hitting it into the grandstands on the par-3 18th, Snedeker was able to bogey the last and fire 2-under 68 — he finished 10-under for the tournament — good enough for a three-shot win over Justin Rose that not only earned him the Tour Championship trophy, but a shiny FedExCup version one as well.

Prior to the Tour Championship, Snedeker had earned over $ 15 million in career earnings on the PGA Tour — an impressive number for a 31-year-old whose career was just starting to take off. But following the win in Atlanta, Snedeker may want to open another bank account, after he earned $ 11.4 million ($ 1.4 for winning the Tour Championship and $ 10 million for the FedExCup) for four days of work. He also became the second straight FedExCup winner to capture the FedExCup and the Tour Championship.

Not bad for a guy who’s currently wielding the hottest putter in golf. Now comes the fun part for Snedeker, as he takes a boatload of confidence to Medinah for next week’s Ryder Cup. He may be a rookie, but there’s no question he’ll be called on to play a major role for the U.S. squad.

With the exception of Rory McIlroy, who’s still the most in-form golfer in the world, Snedker is the name to watch at the Ryder Cup, after he capped off the season off with the biggest win of his career.

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