By Michael A. Lough

The Sports Report

centralgasports@gmail.com

          Advancing to next week’s final FedEx Cup playoff tournament in Atlanta had already been settled for Russell Henley.

          Now, how much momentum he would take into it was the next topic.

          Some. Could have been more.

          Henley’s fourth round of the BMW Championship in Colorado on Sunday was fairly similar to his second round – uneven – and he finished tied for 22nd with a 4-under 284.

          That group finished eight shots back of winner Keegan Bradley, the last player to qualify for the second playoff tournament.

          Henley dropped only one spot in the FedEx rankings. The top 30 ranked players now tee off in Eastlake in Atlanta starting Thursday.

          His Sunday was undone, so to speak, with a double bogey on the par 4 No. 10, a 537-yard hole ranked No. 1 on the course that Henley had parred the first three rounds.

          His tee shot went into the left rough, and next shot into the light right rough. His fourth shot from the left edge of the green of 87 feet got him to within nine feet of the hole, but his bogey shot missed right for a two-foot tap-in for his first double bogey in a good while.

          Henley steadied himself, though, and reeled off six straight pars, with a birdie on 17 and par on 18.  He finished the day with three birdies and two bogeys.

          That double bogey unofficially cost Henley about $221,000 – sort of - the difference between being tied for 22nd and tied for 11th, had Henley parred it for the fourth straight time.

          In addition to preparing for the Tour Championship, Henley is also playing for a spot on the U.S. Presidents’ Cup team.

          The top six point earners after Sunday got automatic spots: Scottie Scheffler, Xander Schauffele, Collin Morikawa, Wyndham Clark, Patrick Cantlay, and Sahith Theegala.

          Henley dropped from eighth to ninth in the points standings for the team, being passed by Sam Burns, who went from 11th to seventh with his tie for second at the BMW. Henley is sandwiched between Tony Finau and Keegan Bradley.

          Captain Jim Furyk will pick the next six players on Sept. 3, the Tuesday after Eastlake.

          The Cup returns to the Royal Montreal Golf Club in Montreal, Canada Sept. 26-29.