Rickie Fowler played in several Signature Events this year, but those spots didn't come on merit. The popular pro received six sponsor exemptions for Signature Events and although he was grateful for those opportunities, he didn't want to rely on them moving forward.

Fowler's prospects of qualifying for 2026 Signature Events were on the brink into Sunday at the FedEx St. Jude Championship, the first leg of the three-event FedExCup Playoffs. He entered the week at No. 64 on the season-long FedExCup, needing to move inside the top 50 after the Playoffs opener to secure a spot in all 2026 Signature Events and also qualify for next week's BMW Championship, the second leg of the Playoffs. The top 30 after the BMW will advance to the TOUR Championship with a chance at the FedExCup crown.

Fowler came up clutch at TPC Southwind with a closing 1-under 69 for a T6 finish at 10-under, moving to No. 48 on the FedExCup and punching his ticket to next year's eight Signature Events. He was projected outside the top 50 early in his second nine Sunday, but he drained a crucial 11-foot birdie at the par-4 15th that moved him onto the right side of the bubble. He closed with three pars to seal the deal; had he finished the week a single stroke higher, he would have finished No. 53 on the FedExCup and been forced to write for sponsor exemptions once again in 2026. It didn't come easy, but then again, most good things don't.

Others weren't as fortunate, including Fowler's longtime friend Jordan Spieth (who also received several sponsor exemptions into Signature Events in 2025). Spieth entered the week at No. 48 on the FedExCup and hovered around the top-50 bubble for much of the week in Memphis, but he finished on the wrong side at No. 54 on the season-long standings. Spieth closed in 2-under 68 for a T38 finish at the FedEx St. Jude, ultimately three strokes back of the top 50.

"I got a handful of spots this year, which I'm incredibly grateful for ... it was great to have a tee time in them this year, and didn't really want to bank on that for next year," Fowler said afterward. "Initial goal for today was to make sure to get inside that top-50 number. Didn't make the push I wanted on the front to put myself in position to where I could go and necessarily try and win. Yeah, just tried to manage and play as simple golf as I could, like I had through parts of the week, and that was kind of the goal for the back nine, to kind of help try and get some things back on track.

"It feels good."

Fowler was among five players to move inside the top 50 at the FedEx St. Jude, joining Kurt Kitayama, Bud Cauley, Jhonattan Vegas and J.T. Poston. In tandem, five players fell outside the all-important threshold: Spieth, Aldrich Potgieter, Jake Knapp, Wyndham Clark and Min Woo Lee.

For Kitayama, who made birdie at the 72nd hole at TPC Southwind, it was the culmination of a dramatic rise in recent weeks. The UNLV alum stood outside the FedExCup top 150 in late April, and he was No. 110 on the season-long standings before winning the 3M Open just three weeks ago. Kitayama entered the week at No. 52 on the FedExCup and ascended 15 spots on the season-long race with a tie for ninth at TPC Southwind.

J.T. Poston didn't make as dramatic a jump, but it was a crucial one regardless. The three-time TOUR winner arrived in Memphis at No. 51 on the FedExCup, knowing it would be a stressful week, and came up clutch with a final-round 68 for a T22 finish that proved just enough to ascend a single position (to No. 50) and earn the BMW Championship's final tee time. Poston ultimately had one stroke to play with, but had he finished two strokes worse, his season would have ended.

Poston was forced to sweat out the final few hours of competition (as if the Memphis heat wasn't enough) before his fate was determined.

"It's a grind," Poston said afterward. "I'm obviously not in contention to win a golf tournament out there, but it just felt like the same type of nerves. You just know what's at stake getting into that top 50 and what that does for your year next year, and you're one good week from making it to East Lake. It's a big deal making it to the BMW, so hopefully it holds up. But it's a stressful day for sure."

Poston's stressful afternoon ended in sweet relief. He's one of the top 50 on the FedExCup who will head to Caves Valley Golf Club outside Baltimore for the Playoffs' second leg.

Recap the full day of FedExCup bubble madness through live updates on everything that happened in a busy final round from Memphis. (All times ET.)

5:54 p.m.: With the leaders coming down the final stretch, the bulk of the bubble madness has finally begun to simmer. As it stands, five men have moved into the top 50 with their play this week, punching their ticket to the BMW Championship and all the Signature Events in 2026. Which means five players have slipped below the line, forcing an end to their FedExCup Regular Season.

Moving in

• Kurt Kitayama (No. 37, T9)
• Bud Cauley (No. 46, T14)
• Rickie Fowler (No. 48, T6)
• Jhonnatan Vegas (No. 49, T14)
• J.T. Poston (No. 50, T22)

Moving out

• Aldrich Potgieter (No. 52, T59)
• Jordan Spieth (No. 54, T38)
• Jake Knapp (No. 55, T62)
• Wyndham Clark (No. 56, T56)
• Min Woo Lee (No. 57, T68)

5:31 p.m.: The man of the moment, Chris Kirk rises to the occasion and drops a massive birdie on the final hole to finish at 9-under and even for the day.

However, the move might not be enough, as even with what might end as a top-10 finish, Kirk is currently projected at No. 51, the first man out of the BMW Championship.

Despite willing himself to excellent play the last two weeks, Kirk's final-round 70 will likely spell the end of his road this season.

5:09 p.m.: As Tommy Fleetwood goes on a birdie barrage atop the leaderboard in pursuit of his first TOUR win, Chris Kirk's birdie putt on No. 17 drifts just over the edge of the cup. Kirk, who was the only man to move inside the top 70 at the Wyndham Championship, will need a birdie on the last to move to 9-under for the week and potentially have a shot at making the field at the BMW Championship.

Kirk currently sits No. 54 in the standings and is 1-over for his final round, a score he will not be happy with tonight if he fails to improve upon it at the final hole despite his inspiring play over the last two weeks.

4:40 p.m.: Bud Cauley, staring down a bogey from the bunker at the par-4 17th, instead flips the script and holes out from the sand for birdie, just his second of the day.

The incredible shot vaults Cauley up to T14, now No. 46 in the standings after starting the week No. 53. Meanwhile, Potgieter continues to sweat as he has now tumbled back to No. 51, just outside the threshold, and Poston moves to Mr. 50.

4:18 p.m.: Kurt Kitayama drains a 37-foot birdie putt on the final hole, capping off a stellar back nine and pushing him well inside the top 50. His final-round 67 moves him to 9-under for the tournament, knocking Rickie Fowler back outside the top 50 heading into the final stretch at TPC Southwind.

3:45 p.m.: Cauley, who started the week at No. 53, makes his first bogey of the day with a wayward tee shot on the par-3 14th. His steady play throughout the week is enough to keep him currently projected inside the top 50.

3:28 p.m.: J.T. Poston cards a final-round 68 to finish at 6-under for the week, good enough to move into the top 50 – for now. "It's a grind," Poston said immediately after the round. "I'm obviously not in contention to win a golf tournament out there, but it just felt like the same type of nerves. You just know what's at stake getting into that top 50 and what that does for your year next year, and you're one good week from making it to East Lake. It's a big deal making it to the BMW, so hopefully it holds up. But it's a stressful day for sure."

Another birdie for Kurt Kitayama, this one a short putt at the par-4 15th, pushes him further inside the bubble.

3 p.m.: Aaron Rai misses his 19-foot birdie attempt on the 72nd hole to move into the top 50. Despite a final-round 67, he stays projected out of the BMW Championship, with nothing left to do but wait. Meanwhile, Chris Kirk makes the turn with a birdie to sneak inside the bubble, hoping to keep his incredible run going. Jhonattan Vegas, who entered the week at No. 56, navigates a rollercoaster round of four bogeys to five birdies to remain the bubble boy at No. 50.

2:50 p.m.: Kurt Kitayama keeps the momentum going with a birdie on the par-4 12th hole to move to a projected 47th in the standings. After adding another birdie at the 15th hole, Aaron Rai heads to the 18th hole projected at No. 51 and needing one more birdie to move into the top 50, displacing rookie Aldrich Potgieter at No. 50. Meanwhile, Rickie Fowler bogeys the seventh hole to fall out of the bubble.

2:35 p.m.: A disappointing final-round 75 leaves Wyndham Clark, who entered the week at No. 49 in the FedExCup standings, at 2-over for the tournament and out of the top 50.

2:18 p.m.: Jordan Spieth dumps it in the water on the 72nd hole for a bogey and final-round 68, projected out of the top 50 and unlikely to advance to the BMW Championship. Back on the 10th hole, Kurt Kitayama nails a 16-foot putt to move from a projected 52nd to No. 49.

1:48 p.m.: Englishman Aaron Rai is not backing down. After stalling with bogeys on Nos. 7 and 10, he makes back-to-back birdies on Nos. 12 and 13 to move from No. 55 to a projected 53rd. If he can keep the birdie train going, he'll have a fighting chance.

1:40 p.m.: It will be a nail-biting finish for Jordan Spieth fans as the Texan edges closer to the projected top-50. A birdie at the par-5 16th hole after a saucy chip from just off the right side of the green gives Spieth hope of extending his 2025 FedExCup.

On the other side of the property, the English duo of Tommy Fleetwood and Justin Rose begin their final round. Fleetwood fires a mini driver into the right fairway bunker, while Rose's tee shot catches a piece of the lush Zoysiagrass fairway.

1:23 p.m.: Tony Finau's streak of making it to East Lake for the TOUR Championship comes to an end after a disappointing showing in Memphis, signing for a final-round 6-over 76. After eight straight visits to Atlanta –tied with Xander Schauffele for the longest active streak – Finau will miss the BMW and ultimately the TOUR Championship for the first time since 2016.

1:10 p.m.: Projected movers inside the bubble, Rickie Fowler and Chris Kirk, begin their final round paired together. Both find the fairway at the dogleg left par-4 first hole. It will be interesting to see if they can feed off each other or if it will come down to a head-to-head for the final positions in the top 50.

After jumping into the top 50, Kitayama heads in the opposite direction after a bogey at the 517-yard, par-4 fifth hole, showing how quickly outcomes can change.

12:30 p.m.: Jordan Spieth needs to make a back-nine run to make it to Maryland. He starts with a birdie at the par-4 13th hole to make it to a projected 52nd in the standings. Recent winner at the 3M Open, Kurt Kitayama moves onto the bubble despite only just starting his round, thanks to help from Jhonattan Vegas, who opens with a bogey in the final round to drop spots. Meanwhile, after entering the week at No. 47 thanks to his recent strength of play, Jake Knapp finishes up with a final-round, 3-over 73 and drops out of the projected top 50.

11:55 a.m.: Aldrich Potgieter's rookie FedExCup run could be over after finishing his first FedEx St. Jude Championship projected outside the top-50 bubble. Entering the week at 43rd in the FedExCup standings, the big-hitting South African waited till the final round to card his first under-par round at TPC Southwind, which still might now be enough to make it through to the second leg of the Playoffs and is projected to finish 52nd in the standings. He'll need some help from those ahead of him, but his final-round 3-under 67 has helped him create some hope.

At the same time, J.T. Poston rattles off three birdies in a row to erase the opening-hole bogey and moves into the projected top 50.

PGATOUR.COM's Alistair Cameron, Stephanie Royer and Jimmy Reinman contributed to this report.