BMW Championship preview

The top-70 players on the FedEx Cup rankings head for Cog Hill Golf and Country Club in Chicago this week to contest the BMW Championship - the third leg of the lucrative FedEx Cup playoffs. Dustin Johnson defends the title.

Dustin Johnson defends
Fergus Bisset
By
published

Lowdown: The top-70 players on the FedEx Cup rankings head for Cog Hill Golf and Country Club in Chicago this week to contest the BMW Championship - the third leg of the lucrative FedEx Cup playoffs. Dustin Johnson defends the title. After his victory in the Deutsche Bank Championship, Webb Simpson heads the FedEx Cup standings with Barclays winner Dustin Johnson in second place. Matt Kuchar currently sits third and Luke Donald fourth.   Home to the PGA Tour's Western Open from 1991 to 2006, then host to the BMW Championship in 2007, Cog Hill Golf and Country Club underwent a $5 million renovation by Rees Jones in 2008. All 18 greens were rebuilt and now feature the high-tech SubAir system to promote optimum growing conditions and faster drainage. New tees were constructed and bunkering shifted to place more of an emphasis on strategy from the tees. Many players grumbled about the condition of the course in 2010 but more favourable weather conditions in the lead up to this event have left the layout in far better shape. Chicago resident Luke Donald tweeted at the start of the week that "players will enjoy the much better conditions." Donald, currently fourth on the FedEx Cup standings, will be looking for a victory here to give him a shot at taking the overall FedEx Cup title but, for many others in the field, the objective will be to secure a place in the top-30 on the standings so as to guarantee a start at next week's Tour Championship at East Lake. Kyle Stanley is currently right on the mark in 30th place with Scotland's Martin Laird just outside at 31st. Justin Rose, Rickie Fowler, Sergio Garcia and Ernie Els are all outside the top-30 going into this event. Last year Dustin Johnson took the title at Cog Hill with a one-stroke victory over Paul Casey.

Venue: Cog Hill Golf & Country Club, Illinois Date: Sep 15-18 Course stats: par 71, 7,386 yards Purse: $8,000,000 Winner: $1,440,000 Defending Champion: Dustin Johnson (-9)

TV Coverage: Thursday 15 - Live on Sky Sports 3 from 8pm Friday 16 - Live on Sky Sports 3 from 8pm Saturday 17 - Live on Sky Sports 3 from 5pm Sunday 18 - Live on Sky Sports 3 from 5pm

Player Watch: Dustin Johnson - Last year's champion will surely contend again this week. He's already a Playoff winner after he secured victory in the Barclays, a win here would put him in a great position to take the FedEx Cup overall.

Vijay Singh - The veteran Fijian may have missed the cut at the Deutsche Bank but he placed in the top five in his last two starts prior to that event. He seems to be returning to form and could be a surprise winner this week.

Rickie Fowler - The young Californian just missed out on the Tour Championship last year and he'll be desperate to ensure it doesn't happen again this time. He's currently 37th on the standings and needs to finish 10th or better to guarantee a start at East Lake.

Key hole: 18th. A testing par 4 of 480 yards, both the fairway and green slope towards a pond on the left hand side. Expect to see a number of players' hopes sink in this hazard.

Skills required: Strategy. Rees Jones' alterations to the course are designed to place greater emphasis on the need for a strategic approach both off the tee and on approaches.

Where next? Amateurs - GB&I win Walker Cup

Fergus Bisset
Fergus Bisset
Contributing Editor

Fergus is Golf Monthly's resident expert on the history of the game and has written extensively on that subject. He has also worked with Golf Monthly to produce a podcast series. Called 18 Majors: The Golf History Show it offers new and in-depth perspectives on some of the most important moments in golf's long history. You can find all the details about it here.

He is a golf obsessive and 1-handicapper. Growing up in the North East of Scotland, golf runs through his veins and his passion for the sport was bolstered during his time at St Andrews university studying history. He went on to earn a post graduate diploma from the London School of Journalism. Fergus has worked for Golf Monthly since 2004 and has written two books on the game; "Great Golf Debates" together with Jezz Ellwood of Golf Monthly and the history section of "The Ultimate Golf Book" together with Neil Tappin , also of Golf Monthly.

Fergus once shanked a ball from just over Granny Clark's Wynd on the 18th of the Old Course that struck the St Andrews Golf Club and rebounded into the Valley of Sin, from where he saved par. Who says there's no golfing god?

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