The change is effective this year, with more tweaks still in the works. 

The announcement on Tuesday evening followed a PGA Tour board vote and a meeting of the Player Advisory Council (PAC) that has been trying for more than six months to find a solution.

The primary goal was to get rid of the staggered start that none of the players seemed to like.

Since 2019, the leader of the FedEx Cup going to East Lake started at 10-under par before the tournament even began. That gave him a two-shot lead over the No.2 player, and a staggered field from there until the last five players who qualified for the 30-man field were at even par.

Now it will effectively be a 72-hole shootout — everyone starts at even par, just like any other tournament — with the FedEx Cup going to the winner.

"We want the Tour Championship to be the hardest tournament to qualify for and the FedEx Cup trophy the most difficult to win," said Scottie Scheffler, the No. 1 player in the world who won his first FedEx Cup title last year. He serves on the PAC.

"Shifting the Tour Championship to a more straight-up format with a tougher course setup makes it easier for fans to follow and provides a more challenging test for players — which brings out the best competition."

Still to be announced is the prize fund. Scheffler received a $US25 million bonus for winning the FedEx Cup last year. The tour indicated the bonus money would be distributed more evenly to account for all 30 players — regardless of their position — have the same chance of winning.

Scheffler won last year at 30-under par for a four-shot victory over Collin Morikawa. Scheffler, the No.1 seed the last three years, had a raw total of 264. Morikawa shot 262, but he was the No.7 seed and thus gave Scheffler a six-shot head start.

Xander Schauffele has twice he had the low score over 72 holes (one time a tie) and watched someone else leave with the trophy.

The tour said it leaned on feedback from its fans to help determine what would make the most compelling finale.

More difficult to define is setting up East Lake as difficult as possible. The tour said fans wanted to see scores closer to par, and the rules officials will be in charge of adjusting the setup to encourage more risk-and-reward moments.

The PAC is studying qualifications for future years that could include a smaller field and a greater reward for how players perform from the season opener in Hawaii through the BMW Championship, which precedes East Lake.