BlogBMW PGA Championship Preview and Picks

The Buzz:

This is the most prestige event on the European Tour.  It’s played on a classic old course Wentworth, about 20 miles west of London.  Over the years it’s been a tough time getting a top-notch field, as some European Tour members took passes (like Sergio Garcia) to play on the PGA Tour instead of it’s tours premiere events.  But that has changed as more marquee players are realizing how important this event is.

I can only wish that more American players would venture to London to play in this event, I would really like to see a deal made with the PGA Tour in which money won in this event would be official money on the PGA Tour.  If that could happen, this event would have a star-studded field.  Now realistically the odds on this happening are slim and none, but it’s always nice to dream.

Here are some of the secrets of what it takes to play well at the BMW PGA Championship.

Key stat for the winner:

• The course is a classic shotmaker course, that is why those that hit lot’s of greens like Luke Donald have done well at Wentworth.  Having a short game is also important because for those that miss the greens, getting it up and down is tough as there are a lot of bumps and knolls around these greens.
•  Experience has always been a key to winning as you see the list of champions including Luke Donald, Colin Montgomerie, Ian Woosnam, Bernhard Langer, Jose Maria Olazabal, Nick Faldo and Seve Ballesteros.  But others with very little experience like Simon Khan, Scott Drummond and Ignacio Garrido have won.  Still have to go with the player with lot’s of experience, even though guys like Ernie Els, Lee Westwood and Padraig Harrington have yet to grace the winners circle at the BMW PGA.
•  It’s interesting to note that Ernie Els has won the Match Play and other events at Wentworth.  But he never won the BMW PGA Championship.  Could he finally break that jinx?  He has a home at Wentworth and has help redesign the course so if there isn’t a person with more “homefield advantage” I can’t think of any.
• Look for lot’s of excitement as the course finishes with a pair of par 5s.  Two years ago Ernie Els made some changes to the 18th by putting a body of water in front of the green.  This brought the scoring average up on the hole, but defeated the purpose of having a player attack the hole in order to win.  The hole has been redone since and it’s now a gambling hole and one that is getting to be better. Look for more excitement in the finish this year.