Welcome back to SI Golf’s Fact or Fiction. We’re sad to see the Gold Zone go, but excited to see the RedZone return.

We are here to discuss a range of statements that writers and editors can declare as “fact” or “fiction” and briefly explain. The answers can also (occasionally) be “neutral” as there are many grey areas in golf.

Do you agree or disagree? Let us know on the SI Golf X Account.

In the final game of the PGA Tour’s regular season, no one made the FedEx Cup playoffs for the first time since 2013, and no one was eliminated. There are currently only 70 spots in the playoffs in a format that was only introduced last year, but more excitement needs to be built into the end of the season.

Bob Harig: FICTION. There was plenty of drama, even though no one joined at the last minute. That was mostly because those closest to them all missed the cut. That’s going to happen. These guys have all year to earn their spot. To spoil it at the end wouldn’t be the way to go.

Jeff Ritter: FICTION. Adding extra weight to the Wyndham just to add some volatility would feel like a gimmick. The players on the fence had their chance this year and just didn’t do anything – that’s just the way it is.

John Pluym: FACT. What makes any playoff race great is always the chance for a team or individual to break through in the final week. That’s why Week 18 of the NFL regular season is so entertaining, as there are multiple playoff games to get into the 14-team playoff field. So I disagree with Bob and Jeff. Bring some volatility.

John Schwarb: NEUTRAL. I don’t have a solution, but it’s a mood killer to have to keep hearing about the FedEx Cup cutoff in the last week of the season and then nothing happens. But that’s just how it is in sports.

Davis Riley won one PGA Tour event this year with full points (Charles Schwab Challenge) but did not make the playoffs. Anyone who wins during the season should automatically get a spot in the FedEx Cup playoffs.

Bob Harig: FICTION. Winning a tour event comes with numerous benefits, including an invitation to the Masters and a two-year exemption. But if even a win doesn’t get you into the top 70, what does that say about the rest of the year? You should have to do more than just get a win, which is a huge advantage to that goal anyway.

John Pluym: FICTION. It’s not about playing great for one week. It’s about being consistently good throughout the season. One win doesn’t make a season.

Jeff Ritter: FACT. The signature events have made the tour a closed system, and a player who wins a non-sig event could absolutely benefit from that extra spot in the top 70. While there are already perks for winning, the opportunities are so limited in the signature events – I think the players who win a non-signature event still deserve a chance to play in the high-paying stops the following year.

John Schwarb: FACT. This is an unintended consequence of the reduced playoff field plus the bloated FedEx Cup points for key events that the Tour should have anticipated. A win-and-you’re-in rule needs to be on the books for 2025.

Lydia Ko needed one more point for admission into the LPGA Hall of Fame and got it with her Olympic victory on SaturdayBecause Olympic gold is worth one point, just like victories in regular LPGA tournaments. Major titles are worth two points – and that should also apply to Olympic gold.

Bob Harig: FACT. The Olympics are so rare and the achievement so impressive that it makes sense to give a bigger reward for winning gold. The LPGA Hall of Fame is already so restrictive and this won’t change that.

John Pluym: FACTPlaying for your country and winning gold is the ultimate goal for many athletes. That’s why the Olympic Games are just as important as a major golf tournament.

Jeff Ritter: FACT. It’s not easy to even qualify for an Olympic field, let alone handle the pressure during competition to win gold. And it quickly became clear that players feel the pressure at the Olympics in a way that’s comparable to the major games.

John Schwarb: FACTThe LPGA Hall is strictly Points based and damn hard to get into – which I find admirable and refreshing – but after three Olympics, it’s time to make that change. Just being included in the 60-player Olympic field is an accomplishment, and the pressure to win is comparable to, if not greater than, a major. Ask Ko how this gold feels compared to her two major titles.

Matt Kuchar decided not to finish the 72nd hole on Sunday night at Wyndham and returned Monday morning – alone. That was even more annoying than in 2018, when he significantly underpaid a local caddie at Mayakoba after winning the tournament.

Bob Harig: FICTION. Poor Matt never quite got over the caddie issue, which was compounded by his refusal to do it right even after he got a lot of ridicule for it. The Wyndham was a snap decision and technically what he did was right. He had every right to do it. And let’s face it, Max Greyserman could have easily 4-putted the 16th green because it was too dark. That was Kuchar’s limit. It just looked bad when everyone else was done.

John Pluym: FICTION. I liked what Kuchar did. He was in the right to leave and come back the next morning. It doesn’t matter that he looked bad doing it. He has nothing to apologize for. And I’ve heard enough about the Caddy debacle. It’s been six years. Yes, he messed up, but let’s just leave it at that.

Jeff Ritter: FICTION. The Mexican caddie tip debacle still stands out because Kuchar never corrected it when he had the chance. The Wyndham walkoff wouldn’t have seemed even THAT ridiculous if another player had made it, but Kuchar has taken a beating for those earlier blunders.

John Schwarb: FICTION. Kuchar knew he was in the wrong at Mayakoba and apologized several times. I suspect he thought he would have company on Sunday night when he quit after his tee shot on 18, but that didn’t happen and he ended up alone and having the strangest Monday finish ever.