BMW Golf Championship To Be Held in Delaware for the First Time

Adobe Stock./By Kzenon

The Wilmington Country Club will host the nationally-broadcasted 2022 BMW Championship, bringing golf stars to the First State.


Wilmington just scored a hole-in-one.

The PGA Tour, Western Golf Association and Wilmington Country Club officials announced on Nov. 17 the BMW Championship 2022 will be held at the Wilmington Country Club on the South Course. While official dates have not been announced, it will likely be held in August of 2022. This will be the first time the tournament will be held in Delaware and only the third time on the East Coast.

The BMW Championship showcases the top 70 PGA Tour players vying to earn one of 30 spots in the season-ending tour championship and the chance to be crowned FedExCup champion. Jon Rahm, Justin Thomas, Keegan Bradley, Dustin Johnson, Jason Day, Rory McIlroy, Zach Johnson, Justin Rose and Tiger Woods are all previous winners of the championship.

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The Wilmington location was chosen to celebrate the Golf Association of Philadelphia’s 125th anniversary in 2022. The Golf Association of Philadelphia is in a partnership with Western Golf Association, who produce the BMW Championship. The partners wanted to continue their East Coast locations and host the event at a location close to the Philadelphia area and one that was capable of such a large event.

 

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To make the Wilmington course ideal for the professional tournament, some adjustments will be made prior to the event.

“With players being as strong and capable as they are, they get the ball so far now, that Wilmington has the ability to stretch out our course. So, we are making some improvements to the course that will allow it to be played longer and be a better test,” says Tom Humphrey, Wilmington Country Club’s 2022 BMW Championship chairman.

The Wilmington Country Club was established in 1901 with 18 holes over the span of 135 acres. Once the course was relocated in the 1950s, golf course architect Robert Trent Jones Sr. designed the South Course and has been a part of the club since 1959.

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This is not the country club’s first time hosting big golf competitions. Amateur competitions have been held at the club such as the 1913 U.S. Women’s Amateur, 1965 and 1978 U.S. Junior Amateur, the 1971 U.S Amateur, the 1978 U.S. Girls’ Junior and the 2003 U.S. Mid-Amateur competition.


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Besides the privilege of hosting the event in Delaware, this event will bring plenty of economic benefits to the Wilmington community. It is estimated that the competition will have a $30 million impact on the area’s economy, according to a news release.

The event is also expected to play a vital philanthropic role by introducing more golfers and fans on the East Coast to the Evans Scholars Foundation and its mission of awarding full tuition and housing college scholarships to deserving youth caddies.

All proceeds from the BMW Championship benefit the Evans Scholars Foundation. Since 2007, the event has raised more than $35 million for Evans Scholarships, according to a news release.

“The BMW Championship at Wilmington Country Club will give us an opportunity to show a new market the power of the Evans Scholars Program,” says John Kaczkowski, WGA President and CEO, in a news release. “This is a critical step in our efforts to expand from coast to coast and reach more deserving young caddies.”

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For more information about the Evans Scholars Foundation visit: wgaesf.org and for more information on the BMW Championship visit bmwchampionship.com.

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