Henry's Last-Ditch Effort Makes Playoffs

In the back of his mind Sunday at the Wyndham Championship, J.J. Henry knew he had better places to be. Back home in Fort Worth, his wife, Lee, was a day away from delivering the couple's second child. But on the back nine at Sedgefield CC in Greensboro, N.C., Henry started delivering on his own. Six birdies were on his card over that final stretch of holes; his final-round 62 earned him a T-4 in the final regular-season event of the year.

It enabled Henry, a non-factor most of the season, to move from 177th to 135th in the FedEx Cup standings, clinching a birth in the year-end playoffs which start Thursday at The Barclays at Ridgewood CC. Henry was on his way from North Carolina to New Jersey -- by way of Texas.

"This was a heck of a bonus," Henry said Sunday night. "The baby was coming and I was on the outside looking in. But Lee understands. The most important thing is, I'll be there."

Lee was already full term, so arrangements had been made to induce labor Monday morning. The couple already knew it was their second boy and that he would be named Carson, joining 5-year-old Connor. J.J. was just trying to figure out his travel schedule, and whether there was a mandatory pro-am at Ridgewood CC on Wednesday; there is, but he hoped to get a scouting report from Brendan Walsh, a club pro and close friend who worked at Ridgewood before moving on to The Country Club in Boston.

"We'll have the baby and then I will figure out a way to get up there," Henry said "This is part of life and has been a great distraction. All this pregnancy stuff eased my mind."

--Tim Rosaforte