5 Big Names To Watch At The BMW Championship

The 2022/23 PGA Tour season has just two weeks remaining as Chicago's Olympia Fields hosts the top 50 in the FedEx Cup standings for the second week of the Playoffs.

The event, formerly known as the Western Open, has been won by some of the sport's biggest names and is back at Olympia Fields for the seventh time and first since 2020. The iconic Country Club has also hosted two US Opens, two PGA Championships, a US Amateur and a Women's PGA Championship.

It's regarded as a demanding test of golf and will be a big challenge as the top 50 in the standings look to make the top 30 to play at East Lake in next week's season-ending Tour Championship.

Rory McIlroy comes in as tournament favourite, with World No.1 Scottie Scheffler second.

McIlroy came close to winning his third title of the year last week at the FedEx St Jude Championship, where he and Tommy Fleetwood ended one shot shy of the playoff.

Scheffler had an off-week by his high standards, although the World No.1 is still in prime position to win the FedEx Cup, with the Texan sitting 2nd in the standings ahead of McIlroy in 3rd.

Let's take a look at five TaylorMade set to challenge this week in Chicago:

BMW Championship Key Info

5 Big Names To Watch At The BMW Championship

Rory McIlroy

• World Ranking: 2
• PGA Tour wins: 24
• FedEx Cup standing: 3
• FedEx St Jude Championship finish: T3

View Rory McIlroy What's in the bag?

Nobody has won as many FedEx Cups as Rory McIlroy (3 - 2016, 2019, 2022) and the Northern Irishman is in a great spot to win it for the fourth time this year.

McIlroy closed with a stunning 65 at TPC Southwind last week to come agonisingly close to the playoff and he's very happy where his game is right now.

"My game is in really good shape," he said. "I think tee to green, this is just a continuation of what I've been seeing over the past couple of months. Ever since really that - like PGA Championship all the way through to here, ball-striking-wise tee to green it's been really good.

"I started to hole a few more putts on the weekend here and got myself up the leaderboard. Yeah, with two playoff events to go, I'm certainly happy with the start. I wish I could have been a couple better, but nothing but confidence going into Chicago."

He seems determined to win a fourth FedEx Cup and is undoubtedly going to be a tough man to beat over the next two weeks.

Tommy Fleetwood

• World Ranking: 15
• DP World Tour wins: 6
• FedEx Cup standing: 10
• FedEx St Jude Championship finish: T3

View Tommy Fleetwood What's in the bag?

Fleetwood matched McIlroy last week in Memphis, shooting 14-under-par to come T3rd and jump into the top-10 of the FedEx Cup standings and move up to 15th in the Official World Golf Ranking.

The popular Englishman somehow hasn't won on the PGA Tour still, and you feel his time is fast approaching - especially after a recent visit to Butch Harmon.

The six-time DP World Tour winner is one of the best ball strikers in the world, and his game should suit the demanding Olympia Fields this week as he looks to pick up his first trophy Stateside and climb up the standings for East Lake.

Fleetwood has had a brilliant year but it has been a win-less one, so far. He shot 63 in the final round of the US Open to come T5th and agonisingly lost out in the Canadian Open playoff where Nick Taylor holed a 72-footer against him on the fourth extra hole.

Collin Morikawa

• World Ranking: 20
• PGA Tour wins: 5
• FedEx Cup standing: 22
• FedEx St Jude Championship finish: T13

View Collin Morikawa What's in the bag?

Morikawa may just be trending into his best form of the season at the right time after a solid T13 last week at TPC Southwind.

The two-time Major champion is yet to win this year, but he does have two runners-up finishes on the PGA Tour as well as a third place and two other top-10s.

He is comfortably inside the top 30 of the FedEx Cup standings so his spot for East Lake looks to be secured, although he'll be keen to climb towards the upper echelons to give him the best shot at winning the FedEx Cup.

The American is one of the game's best iron players so should find plenty of greens this week in what is set to be a higher scoring tournament than we'd usually see on the PGA Tour.

Scottie Scheffler

• World Ranking: 1
• PGA Tour wins: 6
• FedEx Cup standing: 2
• FedEx St Jude Championship finish: T31

View Scottie Scheffler What's in the bag?

The World No.1 has been far and away the best player on the planet this year, with only his putting stopping him from winning almost every week.

He did put a new TaylorMade Spider X Tour SS Proto putter in the bag last week and he'll be hoping to roll in more putts this time around in Chicago.

Scheffler somehow didn't win his second Major in a season that has included two wins, 15 top-10s in 20 starts and zero missed cuts.

He was runner-up in the FedEx Cup last year after a losing a six stroke lead to McIlroy on the final day, and he's in prime position to go one better this year.

Rickie Fowler

• World Ranking: 26
• PGA Tour wins: 6
• FedEx Cup standing: 12
• FedEx St Jude Championship finish: T58

View Rickie Fowler What's in the bag?

What a year it has been for Fowler, who ended 2022 outside of the world's top 100 and is now comfortably back inside the top 30.

Fowler won his sixth PGA Tour title at last month's Rocket Mortgage Classic, ending a four-and-a-half year drought.

He's locked in for the Tour Championship next week but will want to post a couple of good finishes to confirm his spot on the US Ryder Cup side after missing out in 2021. Rickie is in contention for a wildcard pick but a win over the next two weeks should guarantee a return for Team USA.

As well as winning his sixth PGA Tour title this year and vaulting up the world rankings, he also famously became the first man in history to shoot 62 in a US Open at LACC in June.

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