The BMW Championship is not just about money, stakes are much more
All is set for the third playoff of the FedEx Cup to start at Crooked Stick Golf Club. It is not just any other tournament, the stakes are very high. Only the top-30 in the FedEx Cup rankings advance to the Tour Championship and those 30 are the lucky ones.
Winning the BMW Championship or putting up a decent show is all that matters, money does not.
The top-30 players, who advance to the Tour Championship, are guaranteed to play in US Open, Masters and The Open Championship and they also get exemption for all the marquee events.
Now what else can a golfer dream off, other than playing in three of the four majors.
Marc Leishman has the first hand experience of such a situation. In 2009, Leishman finished T2 at the BMW Championship and it ensured that he qualified for all the majors next year.
''I was thinking to myself, 'Hole this putt and you're in the Masters.' I wasn't thinking about $10 million,'' Leishman said. ''To get into the Tour Championship ... look, the money is awesome, but everything that came with it was better''.
For players such as Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy, securing a top-thirty finish overall will not be a priority. However, for somebody like William McGirt, it would be absolutely huge to finish among the top-thirty.
McGirt has shown improvement in the recent times but he has only played once in a major. Currently he is at the 39th spot in the FedEx Cup rankings.
A strong finish at the Crooked Stick Golf Club means that his dream of playing in the majors will come true. ''It would be nice to have $10 million,'' said McGirt, who has just over $1.7 million in career tour earnings.
''But I've played in one major. My No. 1 goal is to get to Augusta at some point. I just want to play Augusta. I've been watching that tournament forever. And if I play well next week, we'll see what happens''.
Money is not the first priory for the players in this tournament. According to the new rules, points are reset after the BMW Championship, so mathematically, everybody can go on and have a shot at the Tour Championship title. It is what comes besides the
money that is more important.
Tags: