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With only three weeks before the playoffs start on the PGA Tour, players are jockeying for position for the final push.

Charley Hoffman found himself in a similar place last year; he didn’t qualify for The Bridgestone or The PGA Championship and after a T7 at John Deere and a T4 at the RBC Canadian Open, Hoffman took it easy until the playoffs began.

Ranked 68th in the FedEx Cup playoff list, Hoffman finished T27 at The Barclays and then won the Deutsche Bank Championship in Boston to move to 2nd with two playoff events remaining, eventually finishing 4th in the FedEx Cup playoffs.

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“It’s about as big as it can get for me,” Hoffman said on Monday about his win last year. “You’re playing against the top 100 golfers of that year on the PGA Tour. The only way you can get into that tournament is the way you played that year, not off last year’s top 50 in the world, not off anything else besides how you played this year.”

Hoffman is in a little better shape in 2011, 42nd in the FedEx Cup rankings, mainly because of his finish last year garnered him invitations to the majors and the World Golf Championships, but unlike last year, Hoffman is not very hot with his best finish since a T2 at Valero Texas Open in April, is a T25 at the AT&T National last month.

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“It’s been a very average year,” Hoffman said on reflection. “I haven’t played like really well. I think unfortunately I haven’t putted as well as I wanted to. Hitting the golf ball really hasn’t been a problem.”

(Photo by Jim Rogash/Getty Images)

Going back to the drawing board, or in this case the video tape, Hoffman pulled out the old video of his win looking for keys.

”Hopefully that’ll work going into the PGA,” Hoffman said of looking at the old video. “And then starting the Playoffs, so hopefully I can get on another hot run.”

Stuart Hall is editor of the Golf Press Association.