Patrick Cantlay defends BMW Championship, Scottie Scheffler top seed for Tour Championship as field confirmed

Published 21/08/2022 at 22:29 GMT

The penultimate event of the PGA Tour season is on the books, with focus turning to the Tour Championship at East Lake following Patrick Cantlay's win in the BMW Championship at Wilmington Country Club. It was a good performance from Cantlay, as he beat off challenges from Scott Stallings, Xander Schauffele and Scottie Scheffler. The latter will be in pole for the Tour Championship.

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Patrick Cantlay produced nerveless golf down the back nine to successfully defend the BMW Championship, and also put himself in prime position to become the first player to defend the Tour Championship.

Cantlay has played steady rather than spectacular golf all season, but at the business end he found the perfect time to win his first individual title of the season (he won the Zurich Classic alongside Xander Schauffele).

The 30-year-old was pushed hard all the way by Scott Stallings, but a birdie on 17 and par on 18 helped him secure the win.

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While victory in its own right was welcome for Cantlay, there were eyes on the Tour Championship and the final 30 for East Lake was decided on Sunday.

World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler will head to the Tour Championship in top spot, and with a two-shot lead over the field.

Aaron Wise got in right on the number, with Shane Lowry the unfortunate player to be one too high.

It was almost a fairytale for Stallings, as his last win came back in 2014 and he had been in the wilderness. But his second-placed finish secures his spot at East Lake.

Tour Championship qualifiers (including starting positions)

1. Scottie Scheffler, 10-under
2. Patrick Cantlay, eight-under
3. Will Zalatoris, seven-under
4. Xander Schauffele, six-under
5. Sam Burns, five-under
T6. Cameron Smith, four-under
T6. Rory McIlroy, four-under
T6. Tony Finau, four-under
T6. Sepp Straka, four-under
T6. Sungjae Im, four-under
T11. Jon Rahm, three-under
T11. Scott Stallings, three-under
T11. Justin Thomas, three-under
T11. Cameron Young, three-under
T11. Matt Fitzpatrick, three-under
T16. Max Homa, two-under
T16. Hideki Maysuyama, two-under
T16. Jordan Spieth, two-under
T16. Joaquin Niemann, two-under
T16. Viktor Hovland, two-under
T21. Collin Morikawa, one-under
T21. Billy Horschel, one-under
T21. Tom Hoge, one-under
T21. Brian Harman, one-under
T26. KH Lee, level-par
T26. JT Poston, level-par
T26. Sahith Theegala, level-par
T26. Adam Scott, level-par
T26. Aaron Wise, level-par

It was a day to forget for Rory McIlroy, who made a superb start to the week but lost momentum after a triple bogey on Thursday and never recovered.

The Irishman’s putter was off colour for most of Sunday, but he birdied his final three holes to finish at nine-under for the tournament.

His focus will not shift to the Tour Championship, but he will start six shots off the pace under the staggered start.

BMW Championship Final Leaderboard

1. Patrick Cantlay,14-under
2. Scott Stallings, 13-under
T3. Xander Schauffele, 11-under
T3. Scottie Scheffler, 11-under
T5. KH Lee, 10-under
T5. Corey Conners, 10-under
T5. Adam Scott, 10-under
T8. Jon Rahm, nine-under
T8. Rory McIlroy, nine-under
T8. Taylor Pendrith, nine-under
T8. Joaquin Niemann, nine-under

Jon Rahm could be a player to watch at East Lake next week, as his game has been trending in the right direction over the past fortnight and he closed with a 67 to get to nine-under.

Viktor Hovland had one of the best rounds of the day, with the highlight of his 65 being a hole in one on the second.

Collin Morikawa had a sorry afternoon, as he four-putted one green and made a 10 on another hole as he finished on one-under after a closing round of 79.

Aaron Wise made double bogey on 15 and bogey on 16, but he held his nerve to make par on 17 and 18 and it was enough to get him into the Tour Championship at 30.

Adam Scott also edged into the top 30 the hard way, as he got up and down from a bunker on 18 to secure his place.

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