2023 BMW PGA Championship Review

Ryan Fox wins the 2023 BMW PGA Championship following four thrilling rounds of action.

The iconic Wentworth Golf Club hosted the BMW PGA Championship last week, and all four rounds were full of enthralling action as some of the best players from around the world went head-to-head for glory. New Zealand’s Ryan Fox emerged as the winner of the 2023 PGA Championship. This was Fox’s first-ever win in this competition.

2022 Champion Shane Lowry was looking to become the first player since Luke Donald (2011 & 2012) to win the BMW PGA Championship in successive years. In the end, Lowry had to settle for a joint 18th place finish.

The first of four rounds of the 2023 Championship began on Thursday, 14th September. There was an immediate surprise with World Number 3 and 2014 winner Rory McIlroy putting in an underwhelming performance which saw him beaten by the likes of Ludvig Aberg and Denmark’s Marcus Helligkilde.

In the end, Helligkilde led the way at the top of the leaderboard by the end of the first round after he managed to post an 8 under 64, which included an impressive 10 birdies and just 2 bogeys. Matthew Fitzpatrick, Tommy Fleetwood, Tyrrell Hatton and 2022 Champion Shane Lowry had also made strong starts.

Ludvig Aberg is one of the sport’s rising stars. Although Rory McIlroy moved to 1 under par, this was not enough for the lead following Round Two. Aberg, together with compatriot Sebastian Soderberg, sat at the top of the standings after the second round had concluded. They both ended the round at 10 under par.

Aberg did not stop there, winning the third and penultimate round of the Championship at 16 under par. Tommy Fleetwood and Connor Syme were 14 under par, whilst Ryan Fox, Aaron Rai and Callum Shinkwin were 13 under par by the conclusion of round three.

Aberg got an eagle on the fourth hole and only got one bogey. His birdie on the 18th hole helped him secure a second successive victory following his round two win. This was a sensational performance from the Swede. His performance at this year’s BMW PGA Championship is even more impressive because this was only his fourth month as a professional. He ended round three posting a 6 under 66 at the iconic Wentworth Golf Club, which secured his spot at the top of the standings.

The 2023 BMW PGA Championship came to a close in dramatic fashion on Sunday. It was the aforementioned Aberg who led the way heading into the final day, leading by a margin of two shots.

However, this day saw leaders struggling, with Aberg, Fleetwood and Syme eventually falling out of favour to win the Championship. England’s Tyrrell Hatton began catching the eye as he rose up the leaderboard – he almost got an ace on the fifth hole, which really continued his momentum. Hatton got birdies on the fifth, sixth, seventh, tenth and eleventh holes to lead by four.

Ryan Fox was emerging as a contender for the title at this stage, and he found five birdies in seven holes, which brought him within two of leader Hatton. At the 14th, Fox got a birdie to bring himself within one of Hatton. However, in this enthralling day of action, Jon Rahm and Callum Shinkwin could not be counted out after they found themselves within two of Hatton and Fox.

Ahead of the suspension of play, England’s Aaron Rai had put himself in third place with birdies on the 13th and 14th holes. Following the resumption, Fox took the lead outright after some misfortune for Hatton.

It would be an extremely close-fought battle for the remainder of the round. Ryan Fox eventually went on to seal the victory, ending the fourth and final round 18 under par. Tyrell Hatton and Aaron Rai settled for joint second in the end.

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