The BMW Championship is the second leg of the FedEx Cup playoffs. It was introduced in 2007, and previously known as the Western Open. The field is comprised of the top-50 PGA Tour golfers in the FedEx Cup standings following the conclusion of last week's FedEx St. Jude's Championship. It will once again be a no cut event, and the top-30 in the standings at the end of the week will advance to the FedEx Cup finale at East Lake. This tournament has been held at a number of different courses, often in the Chicago area, such as Cog Hill, Medinah, and Conway Farms, falling in line with the history of the Western Open. The event has certainly departed from that in recent years, employing venues such as Cherry Hills, Crooked Stick, Aronomink, Bellerive, Caves Valley, and Wilmington C.C. Running through the winners, and it's very rare that we do not see a top player win, as much of the fat has been trimmed at this point.
The last couple of years, we've had champions such as Patrick Cantlay (three times), Jon Rahm, Justin Thomas, Dustin Johnson, Jason Day, and Rory McIlroy. Marc Leishman at 45/1 and Keegan Bradley at 140/1 were the only real outliers across the last decade. We will once again be returning to Olympia Fields in 2023, which has proven to be a departure from the easier venues that the BMW Championship has chosen over the last decade. We last saw Olympia Fields in 2020, when Jon Rahm triumphed over Dustin Johnson in a playoff at four-under par. Only five players broke par that entire week. It played as the hardest non-major venue in the last three years. With a dry couple of weeks in the Chicago area, we should expect similar firm and fast conditions, and plenty of carnage to ensue.
