Patrick Cantlay wins the BMW Championship in an epic playoff.

• Patrick Cantlay (USA, 261 strokes) wins the penultimate PGA TOUR Playoff tournament to move to the top of the FedExCup rankings ahead of the season finale.
• A birdie at the sixth extra hole saw Cantlay overcome his compatriot Bryson DeChambeau. The two had been locked in a thrilling duel for 24 holes in the final round.
• More than 100,000 golf fans enjoy the 15th anniversary of the BMW Championship, which took place at the Caves Valley Golf Club (Owing Mills, Baltimore area) for the first time.
• Collin Morikawa, Dustin Johnson, DeChambeau, Brooks Koepka, Justin Thomas and Cantlay qualify for Ryder Cup Team USA.

Baltimore/Munich. After an enthralling final round duel with Bryson DeChambeau, Patrick Cantlay has secured the prestigious BMW Championship 2021 title and his first Playoff victory. Victory had to be decided in a playoff, after both tied on a total score of -27 – the lowest winning score to par in the history of the tournament. DeChambeau was unable to match Cantlay’s birdie at the sixth extra hole, having passed up several good opportunities to claim the win during the playoff.

“On behalf of everyone at BMW, I’d like to congratulate Patrick Cantlay on winning the 2021 BMW Championship, and say thank you to everyone who worked so hard to make this event a success,” said Oliver Zipse, Chairman of the Board of Management of BMW AG. “We at BMW have long considered the U.S. to be our second home, and this event is an important part of what we do – beyond serving as a national platform for our brand and products, it also provides an opportunity to raise money for the Evans Scholars Foundation.”

Cantlay and DeChambeau, who played together in the final group on Sunday, quickly pulled away from the field to put on a duel that seemed more like matchplay. With Cantlay one stroke behind at the 17th, it seemed that the result had been decided when he landed his drive in the water. However, DeChambeau only recorded a bogey after a chip shot went wrong, allowing Cantlay to stay in the running with a bogey of his own. Cantlay then kept his sporting chances alive, sinking a 21 yards on the 18th green while his rival missed from much closer in.

This pattern was set to continue in the playoff: DeChambeau put on a brilliant display with the driver and his irons and on several occasions he was presented with an easier putt to claim victory – but he proved unable to sink them, while Cantlay got himself out of a tight spot more than once with challenging putts. The decisive moment came at the sixth extra hole for Cantlay, who had been by far the strongest player on the greens throughout the week.

South Korea’s Sungjai Im claimed third place, four strokes back (-23), ahead of Rory McIlroy (NIR, -22) and Erik von Rooyen (RSA, -21). Sixth place was shared by Dustin Johnson (USA) and Sergio García (ESP, both - 20), who are approaching top form just in time for the PGA TOUR Final and the Ryder Cup after middling seasons.

All proceeds from the BMW Championship benefit the Evans Scholars Foundation (ESF) and its mission of awarding full tuition and housing college scholarships to caddies who would otherwise not be able to afford to study. The BMW Championship has contributed more than 36 million dollars to the foundation since the tournament debuted in 2007. The final total for the 2021 tournament will be calculated in around a week’s time. Alongside the ticket sales, the revenue from the Pro-Am tournament also makes an important contribution. This year’s Pro-Am event featured 23-time Olympic swimming champion Michael Phelps, rapper Macklemore (both USA) and star photographer Paul Ripke (GER) on the tee.

The BMW Championship represented the final opportunity for US golfers to score points for the Ryder Cup. The first six players in captain Steve Stricker’s squad have now been confirmed: Collin Morikawa, Dustin Johnson, Bryson de Chambeau, Brooks Koepka, Justin Thomas and Patrick Cantlay. Stricker will call up another six wild card entrants after the TOUR Championship. Qualification for the Ryder Cup Team Europe will end after the BMW PGA Championship (Wentworth Club, 9th to 12th September).