Jason Day and Adam Scott tee off in the first round of this week’s Barclays Championship on the verge of history, both with a chance to become the first Australian to win the lucrative FedEx Cup.

Jason Day’s third place finish in the year long race last year is the closest an Australian has come to claiming the $10 million bonus pool, Adam Scott’s fourth place in 2013 also a close call.

But with both players showing great form in 2016, in particular World Number 1 Day, 2016 shapes as a potential 1-2 finish for Australian fans.

Day currently leads the standings with 2,735 points, 34 ahead of US Open champion Dustin Johnson while Scott is a further 638 points behind in third.

The Barclays will be played at New York’s Bethpage Black course this week, a two time US Open host and also venue for this event in 2012.

Scott has the more experience of the two Australians at the famed public course, a missed cut at the 2002 US Open followed by a T36 in the same event in 2009 and a 62^nd place finish at the 2012 Barclays.

Of those three events Day played only the 2012 Barclays where he finished T24 though will fancy his chances this week.

Not only is the Queenslander the defending champion after taking the title last year at Plainfield CC, but a final round 66 in 2012 rocketed him up the leader board.

In fact, it was only a third round 77 that year that stopped him from being a contender on Sunday and seven years on it would be difficult to bet against the now World Number 1.

Day and Scott are part of a five strong Australian contingent to qualify for the four play-off events, Aaron Baddeley, Marc Leishman and John Senden also in the field.

While the top-125 tee off this week that number is cut to the top-100 for next week’s Deutsche Bank Championship then top-70 for the BMW tournament and finally to the top-30 for the season ending TOUR Championship.

John Senden currently sits 99^th on the standings and will be looking for a good week in New York to advance while at 45^th Baddeley is likely to play at least the first three playoff events and has a decent chance to climb into the top-30.

Leishman is 57^th heading into this week and seems assured of a place in the first three playoff tournaments though will need to produce some good golf to make it all the way to the TOUR Championship.

On the sidelines this week by the narrowest of margins is reigning Australian Open champion Matt Jones who finished 126^th after missing the cut at last week’s Wyndham Championship.

Jones had entered the week clinging to 124^th spot but was overtaken when he missed the weekend and is not only out of the playoffs but also loses full tour status.

A heartbreaking nine FedEx Cup points separated Jones from 125^th placed Seung Yul Noh at the end of the regulation season, the narrowest margin imaginable.