The second tournament of the FedEx Cup Playoffs is set to tee off with the BMW Championship. With the St. Jude Championship wrapped up after crowning Justin Rose as champion, the top 50 players now advance to the next playoff stop. Rose’s dramatic -16 win over JJ Spaun has only made the anticipation high for this next event, which is set to be held at Caves Valley Golf Club, Maryland.
Caves Valley is not a newbie to the golf world. Over the decades, it has hosted elite events that rival more famous courses. From hosting the 1995 US Mid-Amateur to the 2002 US Senior Open – an event remembered when Don Pooley edged Tom Watson in a five-hole playoff- the club has seen its fair share of high-pressure golf, to say the least.
Part of the Valley’s appeal lies in its setting and design. Designed by Tom Fazio and opened in 1991, it is ranked as one of Maryland’s top courses by Golf Digest. The course spans over 962 acres of hills, forests, and wetlands just outside Baltimore. Holes 15, 17, and 18 rank among “three of the hardest holes we’ll play all year,” according to legends like Lanny Wadkins. Among the most treacherous is Hole 16, a brutal 600-yard par-5 guarded by fairway bunkers that demand accurate tee shots and precision into a horizontal, complex greens.
Over the years, its fairways have hosted everyone from sitting US Presidents Barack Obama, George HW Bush, and Bill Clinton to Michael Jordan.
Championship golf and steamed crabs — It’s what Maryland does.
The wait is over. #BMWCHAMPS Week is here.
@JimmysSeafood pic.twitter.com/Ly0AMeChwa
— BMW Championship (@BMWchamps) August 11, 2025
The last time it held the BMW Championship was in 2021, when Patrick Cantlay and Bryson DeChambeau had a record-breaking duel. Since then, the championship did its rotation to various places, including Wilmington Country Club, Delaware (2022), Olympia Fields Country Club, Illinois (2023), and Castle Pines Golf Club, Colorado (2024). This rotation is mainly done with an aim to expand the tournament’s reach and attract new fans and sponsors, as well as to raise money for the Evans Scholars Foundation — a cause with a mission to provide full tuition and housing scholarships to youth caddies.
But now, when the BMW returns in Baltimore, Maryland, on August 12, the course will not be a familiar sight. A lot has changed in the last four years. The nines are flipped, with the ‘new’ ones winding through dense tree lines with two early par 3s played over ravines. The back nine opens up visually but sets a higher challenge with ponds, elevation changes, and a creek guarding the 18th green. The course will see bentgrass greens running fast, the roughs thick, and the fairways firm. Only those who can control their ball under pressure will be rewarded.
Anyway, these are the worries of the players. For the fans, the wide corridors and natural topography make this an ideal spectator venue. Grandstands will climb as high as 30 feet, which will create a stadium-golf experience. With an expected 100,000 fans moving through the gates, the energy will be like never before.
Players set to light up Caves Valley
The BMW Championship field is stacked with some of the biggest names in golf. Scottie Scheffler arrives as the FedExCup points leader— after having a near miss (T3) at Memphis — making him a man hard to beat. Then, there is Rory McIlroy, already a three-time FedExCup Champion, who will be chasing an unprecedented fourth title. His recent form suggests he might be close.
On the other hand, the defending champion Viktor Hovland returns with good memories, while Collin Morikawa, after an unstable season, could have an edge due to his precision with irons. Then there is obviously Patrick Cantlay, who has shown strong signs at the St. Jude with a top-10 finish.
As the BMW Championship makes its long-awaited return to Caves Valley, the stage is set for high-stakes drama on a course that tests every aspect of a player’s game. All contenders will bring a mix of current forms, past successes, and mental toughness to head into the TOUR Championship.
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