Ryan Fox becomes first New Zealander to win the BMW PGA Championship

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+++ Title win confirmed at last hole after thrilling final round +++ European Ryder Cup team in good form +++ BMW supports tournament charity CALM +++ 109,635 fans visit flagship event on the DP World Tour +++

Wentworth/Munich. With rounds of 69, 68, 66 and 67 strokes Ryan Fox posted a final score of 270 (18 under par) on his way to claiming the 2023 BMW PGA Championship title. At the Wentworth Club, the 36-year-old celebrated the most significant win of his career so far. It was the New Zealander’s fourth triumph on the DP World Tour and his first win at a Rolex Series event. Fox produced an effortless birdie at the 18th hole to move one stroke ahead of Aaron Rai and Tyrrell Hatton, the winner of the 2020 BMW PGA Championship (both ENG, -17).

“On behalf of the BMW Group, I would like to congratulate Ryan Fox on winning the 2023 BMW PGA Championship. It was a challenging task to overcome a world-class field, but Ryan demonstrated skill and dedication in an impressive fashion. He is the well-deserved champion”, said Ilka Horstmeier, Member of the Board of Management of BMW AG, Human Resources and Real Estate. “The supporters, volunteers, fans and everyone involved contributed to making the BMW PGA Championship live up to its reputation as the ‘Festival of Golf’.”

Fox had begun the Sunday three strokes behind the leader after round three, Ludvig Åberg from Sweden, and made a less than impressive start with a triple bogey at the third hole. However, neither this nor the storms that interrupted play during the afternoon threatened his composure. Fox dropped no further shots, producing some faultless golf and chalking up a total of eight birdies.

“It feels fantastic. I played great, pretty much from the third hole on, didn’t miss a shot. The back nine was crazy. I made birdie from the trees on 15, first hole back after the delay,” Fox said. "I've always struggled a little bit around here. I think I've snuck maybe one top 20 and struggled to make any cuts. To have a back nine like that, especially after how I started, was amazing."

The European Ryder Cup team, all of whom appeared at the BMW PGA Championship and made the cut, looked to be in good form ahead of the duel against defending champions USA, which will take place from 25th September to 1st October at the Marco Simone Golf & Country Club (Rome, ITA) with Worldwide Partner BMW. Hatton was joined in the top ten on the tournament leaderboard by Jon Rahm (ESP, -16, fourth place), FedExCup champion Viktor Hovland (NOR, -15, fifth), Tommy Fleetwood (ENG, -14, sixth), Rory McIlroy (NIR, -13, T7), Åberg and Sepp Straka (AUT, both -12, T10). Defending champion Shane Lowry (IRL) and Matt Fitzpatrick (ENG, both -10, T18) also gave good performances.

The 23-year-old Åberg looked to be on course for a sensation at the Wentworth Club. The Swedish golfer only turned pro in June of this year and thrilled fans with some fearless and brilliant golf. He was unable to maintain his outstanding level of performance on Sunday but nonetheless clearly showed why captain Luke Donald (ENG, -5, T36) used a wild card to give him a spot on the European Ryder Cup team.

The weekend went in the opposite direction for World number two Rory McIlroy, who needed a birdie at the 18th on Friday to make it to the weekend. Over those two days, the Northern Irishman from showed the class that had secured him the 2014 BMW PGA Championship title, as his round of 65 on Sunday proved to be the best score of the day. McIlroy will be in good spirits ahead of the trip to Rome.

The CALM (Campaign Against Living Miserably) organisation, which focuses primarily on suicide prevention, also enjoyed a winning feeling at the tournament. BMW donates £10 to the lifesaving work of CALM for each birdie scored during the tournament, and £100 for each eagle. A total of 1,675 birdies and 77 eagles were recorded at the BMW PGA Championship, resulting in total donations of £24,450. These will be supplemented by donations from tournament spectators.

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