Jones not afraid of the bubble -- or his upcoming wedding

NORTON, Mass. -- Matt Jones isn't nervous about the wedding at all. Potentially hitting his first -ever tee shot at East Lake, now, that's another matter.

Granted, Jones, who will be married during the off week that precedes THE TOUR Championship presented by Coca-Cola, needs a couple of good tournaments to become one of the elite 30 who will play in the finale of the PGA TOUR Playoffs for the FedExCup.

But if the young Aussie keeps playing the way he did Friday during the first round of the Deutsche Bank Championship, he's certainly got a chance. Jones, who is currently on the bubble for next week's BMW Championship at No. 70, fired a 65 that was two strokes off the lead.

"I'm not thinking about it at all," Jones said. "There are 100 players here this week who want to win a tournament. And I'm one of them. Me being No. 70 or me being No. 1 wouldn't change the way I'm playing this week."

Still, Jones says it's hard not to be aware of your position in the FedExCup. And he took a tumble from No. 56 to 70th when he tied for 60th last week at Ridgewood Country Club.

"You get reminded every time when you look on the scoreboard and see FedExCup," Jones said with a wry smile. "... I didn't have a good Sunday last week which hurt because I could have played well and moved up a lot. If I keep playing the way I did today, I could maybe play my way into the top 30 and not worry about anything else."

Jones missed the Playoffs last year by one spot -- and by less than a point -- when he fell from 119th to 126th at the Wyndham Championship, which is the final event of the regular season. His only other foray into the Playoffs came during his rookie year in 2008 when he missed the cut at The Barclays and was eliminated after one tournament.

So Jones understands the sense of urgency that grips players this time of year.

"It is such a big emphasis on playing well in these four tournaments," Jones said. "You have a good week this week and it's like winning three TOUR events, points-wise. So you have to play well."

The 2010 season has been the best of Jones' three-year PGA TOUR career. He's already won more than $1.1 million to secure his card after finishing 135th and 134th on the money list the last two years. He placed third at q-school last year to regain exempt status.

Jones has posted five top-10s this year, which is one more than his first two seasons combined. His best finish this season came in July when he finished solo fifth at the John Deere Classic.

Jones attributes the improvement this year to the work he's done on his putting with instructor Gary Barter, who teaches at The Australian Golf Club in New South Wales. He ranks 13th in putting average -- well up from 116th and 107th the last two years -- and 15th in putts per round (after ranking 76th and 62nd).

"I've made some good putts," Jones said. "I've made some important putts when I needed to to keep the round going or make a putt on the last hole to get a top 10. My putting has been the highlight of my year so far.

"You look out here everyone on the top of the leaderboard every week is putting well. The top of the money list is always the top putters. They always say drive for show, putt for dough and it's true. I'm one of those people that's always conscious of the golf swing and working on the golf swing (but) I gave a little more emphasis on putting this year."

Even though he's currently No. 63 on the money list and won't need to make another trip to q-school, Jones has his sights set higher. Players who reach THE TOUR Championship gain entry into the first three majors, which would be a huge bonus for him.

If he gets doesn't make it to East Lake, though, Jones would still get into the Masters and the U.S. Open with a top-30 finish on the money list. Not to mention, he'll get in the invitationals if he finishes 70th or better.

Hence, Jones' decision to get married in two weeks and then be ready to play several events in the Fall Series. He met his fiancee of the last 18 months, Melissa Weber, through a mutual friend on TOUR. Mindful of the Playoffs, they set the date for the wedding, which will be held in the Napa Valley, in April.

In a way, it's a win-win for the couple, who won't have their official honeymoon until November. If Jones doesn't make the field for THE TOUR Championship the two plan to head to Las Vegas that week with some family. They'll also spend a week in the Bahamas before he plays in The McGladrey Classic Oct. 7-10.

First things first, though. Jones, who is based in Scottsdale now, could finalize some of those plans if he continues to play well in his Deutsche Bank Championship debut.

"It's a long-hitter's golf course so that should help me," Jones said. "It's a little bit wider which will help me because my driver is not the best club in my golf bag. ... The greens are perfect. So the way I putted today, if I keep that going, it will be good."