I'm guessing tie break points. Lets say the top two have the same # of wins and draws, but one of them faced strong opposition to get there, then that person will won on tie breaks.
Tie column in live tournament
The tie break is calculated by adding the the number of points of everyone you have beaten plus half the point of those you have drawn with. So If someone wins 3 games in a tournament and you beat them you gain 3 tie break points, if you draw with them you gain 1.5. This means you can't win one of those tournaments by just getting a lucky draw and beating easy players.
When you play a live tournament and go to the standings tab, what does the "tie" column mean?