Ranking the Tour Championship field, from Scottie Scheffler to No. 30 - ESPN

ATLANTA — Starting strokes are out at this week's Tour Championship, in which $40 million will be on the line at East Lake Golf Club.

It's back to a level playing field, with all 30 golfers in the field starting at even par Thursday.

Even world No. 1 golfer Scottie Scheffler, who won in half of his past five starts, including last week's BMW Championship.

Unlike last year, when Scheffler started two strokes ahead of the field before winning his first FedEx Cup, he won't have an advantage this week.

«Any one of the 30 has a chance to win the FedEx Cup this year, which is obviously a lot different than it's been in previous years,» Masters winner Rory McIlroy said. «I think with that, it's a clean slate for everyone, and it's a great opportunity for one of the guys that maybe wasn't a huge part of the season to put their hand up and have a chance to win the big prize at the end of the year.»

Of course, they might have to take down Scheffler to do it.

Here's a look at the 30 golfers in the Tour Championship field.

1. Scottie Scheffler

Given his recent form, Scheffler will be the favorite every time he tees it up until someone unseats him. A five-time winner this season, Scheffler will try to become the first back-to-back FedEx Cup champion and one of only three golfers to collect multiple FedEx titles (Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy were the others). DataGolf.com gives Scheffler a 31.4% chance to win again this week.

2. Rory McIlroy

Last week, McIlroy returned to the tour for the first time in nearly a month and tied for 12th at 3 under in the BMW Championship. He's the only three-time winner at East Lake, in 2016, 2019 and 2022, and finished in the top 10 in nine of his previous 11 starts. If anyone can keep pace with