The $10 million prize that will go to the winner of this weekend’s FedEx Cup soon may be on the decline, PGA Tour players said.

FedEx, the second-largest U.S. package-shipping company, pays out $35 million over the duration of the four-event playoffs. With several golfers in contention for the overall title heading into this week’s Tour Championship in Atlanta, the tournament winner could take home $11.35 million if he also collects the FedEx Cup title bonus.

Paul Casey and Steve Stricker, among five players who could capture the $10 million bonus with a win this week, have a hard time rationalizing the payout.

"The money is outrageous," Casey said yesterday. "It’s a figure that I’m not too familiar with."

PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem said many elements in the FedEx Cup format remain under discussion with players. He didn’t rule out making another round of alterations to the points structure, a formula that has twice been tweaked since the original plan was revealed at the end of the 2006 season.

"There are a lot of opinions in this subject matter," Finchem said during a news conference at East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta, where the season-ending tournament begins tomorrow. "I’m not sure I read two opinions that are the same. We like that. We like the debate that it generates, the interest that it creates in the cup."

One thing Finchem isn’t prepared to do is reduce the amount of money being paid by sponsors.

"We wouldn’t want to go backwards," he said.