In the Tim Finchem press conference yesterday, the PGA Tour Commissioner basically did the usual song and dance routine when giving the State of the TOUR address at the TOUR Championship.  He SAID said nothing of particular detail or note, but this one rare tidbit about his thoughts on the FedExCup format and how he thinks fans are getting the system.

First, Finchem's thoughts on the incessant blabbering (to which I have contributed immensely) about the format of the points, and the reset, and the dancing bears.

Some people say, well, wouldn't it be easier if you just took the Money List. Well, yeah, but then if you ask somebody, well, should a major championship count more than another event, you'd say yes. Well, the major championships don't have the highest purses. So then you say, well, let's double the money or something.

So there isn't any perfect way. It really depends on -- if you're only interested in, say, who has the most points, who's going to move from that position as you get in the Playoffs, given that there are more points available, and this seems to me it's pretty simple this week. That fan is probably saved. If you want to delve into the details and say why did a major championship get this many points and the player get this many points versus any other week, because we make the arbitrary view that it's worth more.

We just have to keep explaining it, I think, and gradually people will want to spend more time, go on line and study it and evaluate the different point configurations in tournaments, three different sections of the season.

Sorry for the length, but that is the shortest I could make that and still get the point across.  What can I say - Tim Finchem was some kind of debate champion.  Now, imagine sitting in on that.  For 20 minutes.

When asked about Finchem's feelings on what the FedExCup produces, he made it evident that he isn't really about crowning a proper champion, but just ruffling feathers.

We're not after a system that answers all these kind of questions. That's not what we're about. You could argue that until the cows come home, and I think that's great; I think you should. I think the BCS is blessed to have the kind of controversy they have. Everybody talks about it. I hope we get talked about as much and people are strong-willed on both sides and very vocal about it and write blogs about it, talk about it, go on TV shows, and argue about it. It's great. That's what we want.

Hey!  A shout out to me!  Well, that woke me up a bit.

The BCS isn't blessed to be the hunk of crap that it is.  Everybody hates the BCS.  Seriously, hates it.  The only reason anyone watches the BCS games is because they are interesting matchups.  But, perhaps that is all that Finchem wants.  He wants four interesting tournaments and doesn't much care if the true winner is crowned.  And, to his point, I agree with him. 

The FedExCup is never going to guarantee that the player of the year wins the $10 million.  So, stop dreaming about that.  Besides, in other sports, the best team doesn't necessarily win the championship.  They just won when it mattered.

Consider this, though.  What if the stars align so that Leishman or Furyk or some other random wins this thing over Woods?  Maybe this gives golf an opportunity for some well-needed PR.  Nothing like playing for $10 million to make a lot of these guys come out of their shell.

Then again, Tiger Woods didn't even have to play in the first three events.  Steve Elling at CBS Sports did a little bit of number crunching and told Tiger yesterday that he didn't even have to play in the first three events in order to qualify for the Tour Championship in the top five.  Had he not played at all, he would have been seeded third, with nearly an equal chance at the FedExCup as he has now being in first.