The PGA Tour’s postseason will head north from Tennessee to Maryland for the 19th edition of the BMW Championship at Caves Valley Golf Club.
The second of three FedEx Cup Playoff legs, the BMW will feature the top-50 positioned players in the standings, with only 30 receiving a ticket to East Lake next week.
Keegan Bradley will return to defend his 2024 title – although he was victorious at Castle Pines in Colorado, so he forfeits any home-field edge. Joining the current world No. 12, will be 49 additional elite tour players, with many seeking to cement a spot in the big-money finale next week in Atlanta.
The Skinny
Tournament: BMW Championship
Dates: Aug. 22-25, 2024
Where: Owings Mills, MD
Course: Caves Valley Golf Club
Distance: 7,601 yards (Par 70)
Architect: Tom Fazio
Field Size: Top 50 in FEC Standings
Qualifying: Top 50 FEC (After FedEx St Jude)
TV Network: GOLF/NBC
Purse: $20,000,000
Winning Share: $4,000,00
FedExCup Points: 2,000
Defending Champion: Keegan Bradley
How to Follow the BMW Championship
TELEVISION: Thu-Fri: 2-6 p.m. (GOLF); Sat: 1-3 p.m. (GOLF), 3-6 p.m. (NBC); Sun: 12-2 p.m. (GOLF), 2-6 p.m. (NBC)
STREAM: Thu-Fri: 2-6 p.m.; Sat: 1-3 p.m., 3-6 p.m.; Sun: 12-2 p.m., 2-6 p.m. (NBC SPORTS APP)
PGA TOUR LIVE: Thu-Fri: 9:15 a.m.-6 p.m.; Sat-Sun: 9 a.m.-6 p.m. (ESPN+)
RADIO: Thu-Fri: 12-6 p.m.; Sat-Sun: 1-6 p.m. (PGA TOUR Radio/Sirius XM)
EVENT LINKS: Website | Facebook | X/Twitter | Instagram
PGA TOUR LINKS: Website | Instagram | X/Twitter | Facebook | YouTube
BMW Championship History
Depending on how it is viewed, the BMW Championship could be considered to have a relatively short history, or a long, illustrious one.
The event we know today as the BMW Championship was an original FedEx Cup event, started in 2007 – the same year as the first postseason, and originally rotated between several mid-West (mainly Illinois) golf courses. For the past several editions, though, it’s bounced around a bit, including stops in Maryland, Delaware and now Colorado.
Tiger Woods won the inaugural trophy, and then took the championship again two years later in an eight-stroke shellacking at Cog Hill.
In 2016, Dustin Johnson won his second BMW, which tied Tiger for the most wins in event history. Keegan Bradley (2018, 2024) and Patrick Cantlay have also won twice with Cantlay the only player to win back-to-back titles (2021 and 2022).
Other marquee stars who own BMW trophies include Rory McIlroy, Justin Rose, Jason Day, Justin Thomas, Jon Rahm, and Viktor Hovland.
However, before it was the merciless third second leg of the FedExCup Playoffs, the BMW Championship was a regular PGA Tour stop known as the Western Open. And that tournament – once considered a major before the advent of official majors – has roots that go all the way back to 1899, making it the third-longest continuously running event on the PGA Tour, with only the U.S. Open and the Open Championship going back further.
For most of its history, the Western Open was an elite event that included such notable winners as Willie Anderson, Walter Hagen, Ben Hogan, Sam Snead, Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus, and Tiger Woods, who holds the distinction of winning before and after it became a playoff event, and re-titled as the BMW Championship.
Recent Winners
- 2024: Keegan Bradley -12 (Castle Pines, CO)
- 2023: Viktor Hovland -17 (Olympia Fields, IL)
- 2022: Patrick Cantlay -14 (Wilmington, DE)
- 2021: Patrick Cantlay -27 (Caves Valley, MD)
- 2020: Jon Rahm -4 (Olympia Fields, IL)
- 2019: Justin Thomas -25 (Medinah CC, IL)
- 2018: Keegan Bradley -20 (Aronimink GC, PA)
- 2017: Marc Leishman -23 (Conway Farms, IL)
- 2016: Dustin Johnson -23 (Crooked Stick, IN)
- 2015: Jason Day -22 (Conway Farms, IL)
- 2014: Billy Horschel -14 (Cherry Hills, CO)
- 2013: Zach Johnson -16 (Conway Farms, IL)
- 2012: Rory McIlroy -20 (Crooked Stick, IN)
- 2011: Justin Rose -13 (Cog Hill, IL)
Tournament Records
- Score: 260 – Keegan Bradley (Aronimink GC, 2018)
- To Par: -27 – Patrick Cantlay, Bryson DeChambeau (Caves Valley GC, 2021)
- Round: 59 – Jim Furyk (Conway Farms, Rd 2, 2013)
- Wins: 2 – Keegan Bradley (2018, 2024), Patrick Cantlay (2021-22), Dustin Johnson (2010, 2016), Tiger Woods (2007, 2009)
Field & Odds
The field will be comprised of the Top 50 in the FedEx Cup standings following completion of the FedEx St. Jude Championship.
Scottie Scheffler (2-1) and Rory McIlroy (6-1) are the heavy favorites with Xander Schauffele (18-1) the only other player with odds better than 20-1.
Rounding out the top-5 betting favs are Ludvig Aberg, Patrick Cantlay, and Tommy Fleetwood, who were tied at 20-1. (Cantlay won the BMW the last time it was played at Caves Valley.)
Cam Young and Justin Thomas are 22-1, with Collin Morikawa, J.J. Spaun, and Viktor Hovland wrapping up the top-10 power players at 30-1.
Top-10 Betting Favorites
1. Scottie Scheffler 2-1
2. Rory McIlroy 6-1
3. Xander Schauffele 18-1
4. Ludvig Aberg 20-1
4. Patrick Cantlay 20-1
4. Tommy Fleetwood 20-1
7. Cameron Young 22-1
7. Justin Thomas 22-1
9. Collin Morikawa 30-1
9. Viktor Hovland 30-1
9. J.J. Spaun 30-1
Full Field, Rank & Odds
Joel Cook contributed to this preview.
