Whyte_&_Mackay_PGA_Championship
BMW PGA Championship
Golf tournament in the United Kingdom
The BMW PGA Championship is an annual men's professional golf tournament on the European Tour. It was founded in 1955 by the Professional Golfers' Association, and originally called the British PGA Championship.
| Tournament information | |
|---|---|
| Location | Virginia Water, Surrey, England |
| Established | 1955 |
| Course(s) | Wentworth Club |
| Par | 72 |
| Length | 7,267 yards (6,645 m) |
| Tour(s) | European Tour |
| Format | Stroke play |
| Prize fund | US$9,000,000 |
| Month played | September |
| Tournament record score | |
| Aggregate | 266 Brian Bamford (1961) |
| To par | −21 An Byeong-hun (2015) |
| Current champion | |
 Ryan Fox | |
| Location map | |
The BMW PGA Championship has usually been played each May, on the weekend of the UK's Spring Bank Holiday, over the West Course at the Wentworth Club in Surrey, England. The PGA European Tour has its headquarters at the club and as the tour's home tournament, the BMW PGA Championship is often regarded as the flagship event on the European Tour. The tournament switched to September in 2019 as part of a revamp of the golfing calendar in which the US PGA Championship moved to May.[1]
It has usually had the highest prize money of any event which the tour organises, but this changed in 2009 with the introduction of the Race to Dubai, and the $10 million Dubai World Championship at the end of the season. There are other more lucrative events than the BMW PGA Championship which are part of the European Tour schedule, such as the majors and the World Golf Championship events, but these are organised by other bodies. It is also the European Tour's designated "Premier event" for the purposes of the Official World Golf Rankings, with a minimum of 64 ranking points available to the winner.[2]
The winner of the tournament is given an exemption into that season's U.S. Open and the next three Open Championships.
In 2000, Colin Montgomerie became the only player to win three years in a row.[3]
In 2021, Billy Horschel became only the second American to win the event, the first since Arnold Palmer in 1975.[4]
| European Tour (Rolex Series) | 2022– | |
| European Tour (Flagship event and Rolex Series) | 2017–2021 | |
| European Tour (Flagship event) | 1990–2016 | |
| European Tour (Regular) | 1972–1989 | |
| Pre-European Tour | 1955–1971 |
Currently in the United Kingdom, all four rounds of the BMW PGA Championship are shown live by Sky Sports with highlights being shown by the BBC.
- Shortened to 54 holes after cancellation of Friday's play due to Operation London Bridge.
- "US PGA Championship: Golf's fourth major moved from August to May". BBC Sport. Retrieved 12 August 2017.
- "How the system works". Official World Golf Ranking. Retrieved 23 October 2016.
- "Montgomerie Wins 3rd Straight Volvo". The New York Times. 30 May 2000. Retrieved 23 May 2009.
- "BMW PGA Championship: Billy Horschel cards bogey-free 65 to claim one-shot win at Wentworth". Sky Sports. 12 September 2021.
- Coverage on European Tour official site
- BMW Golfsport – official BMW golf site