BMW, the PGA TOUR and the Western Golf Association (WGA) to continue the BMW Championship success story until 2022.
The agreement further strengthens BMW’s involvement in golf worldwide.
Since the introduction of the playoffs in 2007, the BMW Championship has boasted one of the best line-ups in world golf, featuring the 70 best players on the PGA TOUR.
The BMW Championship has been voted ‘PGA TOUR Tournament of the Year’ on four occasions.
Since 2007, the BMW Championship has raised more than 30 million US dollars for the Evans Scholars Foundation.
The long-standing relationship between BMW and the Western Golf Association was extended with today’s announcement that BMW will continue as the title sponsor of the BMW Championship. With this new agreement, BMW will host the BMW Championship, the penultimate event on the PGA TOUR’s FedExCup Playoffs, through 2022.
“We are very excited to remain the title sponsor of the BMW Championship, one of golf’s premiere events,” says Bernhard Kuhnt, president and CEO, BMW of North America. “The BMW Championship provides us a global platform to connect with our network of owners, dealers and golf fans. Moreover, we have been proud partners alongside the Evans Scholars Foundation for 13 years, helping to provide opportunities for students to follow their dreams. We are looking forward to continuing those efforts in support of these deserving young caddies.”
All net proceeds from the BMW Championship benefit the Evans Scholars Foundation, which provides full housing and tuition college scholarships to hardworking young caddies. Since the tournament’s inception in 2007, the BMW Championship has raised more than $30 million for the Evans Scholars Foundation. For the coming 2019-2020 academic year, a record 1,000 caddies will be attending 18 major colleges and universities on Evans Scholarships. Currently there are more than 11,500 Evans Scholarship alumni nationwide.
With the renewal of the BMW Championship, the premium car manufacturer strengthens its worldwide commitment to the sport of golf. In addition to the PGA TOUR, BMW is also the Worldwide Partner of the Ryder Cup, beginning in 2020 at Whistling Straits in Wisconsin, as well as the 2022 event in Rome, Italy. BMW has had a connection with the event dating back to 2006, with the European Team.
“As we increase our focus on luxury vehicles such as the all-new BMW 8 Series and the first-ever BMW X7, the BMW Championship and the golf platform present a unique opportunity to engage customers and dealers,” says Uwe Dreher, vice president of marketing, BMW of North America. “The BMW Championship’s move to August guarantees even more visibility and opportunities to showcase our brand. Coupled with BMW’s support of the Ryder Cup, we are able to strengthen our long-standing relationship with the sport.”
The extension underlines BMW’s leading role as a long-term partner of global golf. Over the next few years, the company will be a European Tour partner and will be the title partner of the BMW PGA Championship (19th to 22nd September 2019, Wentworth Club, London), and will continue to host the BMW International Open (GC München Eichenried) in June. The BMW Ladies Championship will celebrate its LPGA Tour debut from 24th to 27th October 2019, in Busan (South Korea). For over 30 years, BMW has also been organising the largest international tournament series for amateur players, the BMW Golf Cup International. Since last year, the company has been using the innovative format of the BMW TrackMan Open to put golf firmly in the digital age and appeal to a younger target audience.
The history of the BMW Championship dates back to 1899, when the tournament celebrated its debut as the Western Open. This makes it the third-oldest tournament on the PGA TOUR calendar. Only the Open Championship and the U.S. Open have been around for longer. Since the tournament became the penultimate playoff event, it is open only to the 70 best players in the FedExCup standings and just 30 of them can qualify for the subsequent finale, the TOUR Championship in Atlanta.
The BMW Championship was first named “PGA TOUR Tournament of the Year” in 2008, an accolade that was awarded for another three consecutive years between 2012 and 2014 – an achievement that remains unmatched to this day.
Next year’s BMW Championship will once again be contested in the Chicago area, at Olympia Fields Country Club’s North Course from August 20-23, 2020.
BMW Championship: Previous Winners and Venues.
2018 Keegan Bradley (USA) Aronimink Golf Club (Philadelphia)
2017 Marc Leishman (AUS) Conway Farms Golf Club (Chicago)
2016 Dustin Johnson (USA) Crooked Stick Golf Club (Indianapolis)
2015 Jason Day (AUS) Conway Farms Golf Club (Chicago)
2014 Billy Horschel (USA) Cherry Hills Country Club (Denver)
2013 Zach Johnson (USA) Conway Farms Golf Club (Chicago)
2012 Rory McIlroy (NIR) Crooked Stick Golf Club (Indianapolis)
2011 Justin Rose (ENG) Cog Hill Golf & Country Club (Chicago)
2010 Dustin Johnson (USA) Cog Hill Golf & Country Club (Chicago)
2009 Tiger Woods (USA) Cog Hill Golf & Country Club (Chicago)
2008 Camilo Villegas (COL) Bellerive Country Club (St. Louis)
2007 Tiger Woods (USA) Cog Hill Golf & Country Club (Chicago)
