The final two events to the 2022-23 PGA Tour season have arrived with the BMW Championship beginning this week and the finale, the Tour Championship, next week.
The top 50 players in the FedEx Cup standings are present at Olympia Fields in Chicago as the top 30 after Sunday’s final round advance to Atlanta for the Tour Championship.
Last week, Lucas Glover won the FedEx St. Jude Championship for his second straight PGA Tour victory. Since his Wyndham Championship win two weeks ago, Glover has vaulted 108 spots in the standings to No. 4 heading into this week.
The course at Olympia Fields is par-70, the second straight par-70 course, measuring 7,366 yards. The last time Olympia Fields was utilized on the PGA Tour was in 2020 when Jon Rahm won with a score of -4, which included making a 66-foot putt for birdie on the first extra hole for the win.
Glover joined Rahm this season as the only two players to win in back-to-back starts when the Spaniard won the Sentry Tournament of Champions in Hawaii then The American Express in January.
Length is going to be a big test this week at Olympia Fields as eight of the 12 par-4s are longer than 445 yards. In 2020, none of the par-4s played under par, which means it is going to be a challenge for the field, especially with the driver. Also from 2020, the field was using the driver about 75% of the time, so needing to hit fairways with drivers will be vital.
Related: World Golf Rankings: A look at the top 10 after the FedEx St. Jude Championship
What channel is the BMW Championship on?
The BMW Championship will be televised between CBS and the Golf Channel.
Television schedule for the BMW Championship
| Round | Date | Time (ET) | TV |
| 1 | Thursday, August 17 | 2:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. | Golf Channel |
| 2 | Friday, August 18 | 2:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. | Golf Channel |
| 3 | Saturday, August 19 | 1:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. 3:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. | Golf Channel CBS |
| 4 | Sunday, August 20 | 12:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m. 2:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. | Golf Channel CBS |
Other coverage for the BMW Championship
In addition to CBS and the Golf Channel, the BMW Championship will also be broadcasted on ESPN+ and Peacock. PGA Tour Live for the marquee and feature groups can be exclusively found on ESPN+ for all four days of the tournament, in addition to the featured holes at 6, 8, 13 and 16.
The BMW Championship will also be on the airwaves of Sirius XM.
Thursday, August 17 (Round 1)
ESPN+: 9:15 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. ET
Peacock: 2:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.ET
Sirius XM: 12:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. ET
Friday, August 18 (Round 2)
ESPN+: 9:15 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. ET
Peacock: 2:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. ET
Sirius XM: 12:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. ET
Saturday, August 19 (Round 3)
ESPN+: 9:15 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. ET
Peacock: 1:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. ET
Sirius XM: 1:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. ET
Sunday, August 20 (Round 4)
ESPN+: 9:15 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. ET
Peacock: 12:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m. ET
Sirius XM: 1:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. ET
How much are tickets for the BMW Championship?
Tickets for the BMW Championship begin at $85 to walk the grounds and prices are increased for tickets to the Trophy Club, The Island, The Clocktower Club and the 1915 Club. The hospitality or club venues, including The Villas at Olympian Village, the 16th Green Skybox, the Champions Club and the Stagg Club, are sold out.
In addition, the BMW Championship is offering active, retired or reserved military members and veterans one free grounds admission per day while two youth, ages 15 and under receive admission with a ticketed adult.
Payout for the 2023 BMW Championship
The total purse for the FedEx St. Jude Championship is set at $20 million and the winner will receive $3.6 million. In addition, the winner will receive 2,000 points towards the FedEx Cup standings. The points have quadrupled to increase the fluctuation in the standings as the week progresses.
Who are some of the top golfers in the BMW Championship field?
The top names are present this week, including last year’s BMW Championship winner, Patrick Cantlay, who is looking to win this event for the third consecutive year. Cantlay is trying to become the first player since Steve Stricker to win a tournament three straight years when he won the John Deere Classic from 2009-11.
Cantlay, who lost in the playoff last week to Glover, jumped up to No. 5 in the standings as he looks to find himself in a better position ahead of next week’s Tour Championship. Last year, Cantlay won the BMW Championship at the Wilmington Country Club in Delaware and the year before that, he won at Caves Valley Golf Club in Maryland.
The top three in the World Golf Rankings are also the same three players (in a different order) in the standings. Rory McIlroy is No. 3 in both rankings while Scottie Scheffler holds the top spot in the world rankings and Rahm leads the standings.
All three, with Cantlay at No. 4 in the world rankings, are present this week in the Windy City, looking to build momentum heading into the Tour Championship.
In total, 10 of the top 11 players in the Official World Golf Rankings are on hand this week for the penultimate event of the 2022-23 PGA Tour season.
Related: Who has won the most PGA Tour wins of all-time?
5 players with the best chance to win the BMW Championship trophy
Patrick Cantlay
Patrick Cantlay’s runner-up finish from last week was motivating in the sense that it was his highest finish at an event since he tied for fourth at the Travelers Championship in June. However, what is better is that Cantlay is trying to get hot late in the season, which is what he has done over the last few playoffs, including winning the FedEx Cup title two years ago.
The motivation is there and Cantlay can use last week as the bar to win the BMW Championship for the third straight year and on a third different course.
Rory McIlroy
Rory McIlroy continues to put himself in contention week in and week out with his eighth straight top 10 finish since the second major tournament of the year in May, tying for third last week. The key thing for McIlroy was his putting heading into last week. McIlroy finished 23rd in strokes gained: putting and seventh in putts per green in regulation.
The length in McIlroy’s game will an advantage this week as he leads the PGA Tour in driving distance this season, averaging 325.8 yards off the tee.
Scottie Scheffler
Scottie Scheffler had an up and down putting tournament last week, who like McIlroy was trying to figure out his stroke on the green. Although he was last in strokes gained: putting in Saturday’s third round last week, Scheffler was still top 20 in strokes gained: off the tee, approach the green and tee to green throughout all four rounds.
Scheffler led the PGA Tour this season in scoring average, greens in regulation, strokes gained: total, tee to green and approach the green, while being second in strokes gained: off the tee. If his putting a any better than last week, he is player to watch on Sunday.
Viktor Hovland
Since his T43 at the Wells Fargo Championship in May, Viktor Hovland finished no worse than 29th, including a win in extra holes at the Memorial a couple months ago. Hovland also tied for second at the PGA Championship and has a couple of T13s in his last two starts, last week and at the Open Championship.
If he make a few more shots in Thursday’s first round last week, we’re talking about a better finish for the Norwegian, who also officially qualified for the European team for the Ryder Cup on Tuesday.
Tommy Fleetwood
Although Tommy Fleetwood has yet to record a PGA Tour win, he recorded his 22nd top-5 finish at a PGA Tour event, which is the most of any player on the PGA Tour without a victory, according to Justin Ray. In addition, Fleetwood is also the first PGA Tour player to surpass $20 million in career earnings without a win.
Having said that, Fleetwood finished tied for third alongside McIlroy last week and led the field in putts per green in regulation. He has been a sold player on the PGA Tour this season, ranking no worse than 33rd in all six strokes gained categories (total, tee to green, off the tee, approach the green, around the green and putting), including ranking sixth in strokes gained: total and seventh in strokes gained: tee to green.
BMW Championship pairings
All times ET; MG: Marquee Group, FG: Featured Group
| Round 1: 1 tee | Round 2: 10 tee | Players |
| 9:26 a.m. | 11:54 a.m. | J.T. Poston & Brendon Todd |
| 9:37 a.m. | 12:05 p.m. | Adam Svensson & Matt Fitzpatrick |
| 9:48 a.m. | 12:16 p.m. | Adam Hadwin & Byeong Hun An |
| 9:59 a.m. | 12:27 p.m. | Sahith Theegala & Justin Rose |
| 10:10 a.m. (FG) | 12:43 p.m. | Jordan Spieth & Sungjae Im |
| 10:21 a.m. | 12:54 p.m. | Emiliano Grillo & Sepp Straka |
| 10:32 a.m. | 1:05 p.m. | Xander Schauffele & Adam Schenk |
| 10:43 a.m. | 1:16 p.m. | Russell Henley & Nick Taylor |
| 10:54 a.m. (FG) | 1:27 p.m. | Patrick Cantlay & Max Homa |
| 11:10 a.m. (MG) | 1:38 p.m. | Rory McIlroy & Lucas Glover |
| 11:21 a.m. | 1:49 p.m. | Brian Harman & Tommy Fleetwood |
| 11:32 a.m. | 2:00 p.m. | Hideki Matsuyama & Tom Hoge |
| Round 1: 10 tee | Round 2: 1 tee | Players |
| 11:43 a.m. | 9:26 a.m. | Cam Davis & Cameron Young |
| 11:54 a.m. | 9:37 a.m. | Andrew Putnam & Eric Cole |
| 12:05 p.m. | 9:48 a.m. | Seamus Power & Lee Hodges |
| 12:16 p.m. | 9:59 a.m. | Kurt Kitayama & Denny McCarthy |
| 12:27 p.m. | 10:10 a.m. | Chris Kirk & Sam Burns |
| 12:43 p.m. | 10:21 a.m. | Corey Conners & Tyrrell Hatton |
| 12:54 p.m. | 10:32 a.m. (FG) | Jason Day & Collin Morikawa |
| 1:05 p.m. | 10:43 a.m. | Si Woo Kim & Tom Kim |
| 1:16 p.m. | 10:54 a.m. | Tony Finau & Taylor Moore |
| 1:27 p.m. | 11:10 a.m. (FG) | Viktor Hovland & Wyndham Clark |
| 1:38 p.m. | 11:21 a.m. (MG) | Jon Rahm & Scottie Scheffler |
| 1:49 p.m. | 11:32 a.m. | Keegan Bradley & Rickie Fowler |
| 2:00 p.m. | 11:43 a.m. | Harris English & Patrick Rodgers |