UK: 18+ USA: 21+ | Begambleaware.org | T&Cs apply | Play Responsibly
After two days of the 2023 BMW Championship, Max Homa has a two-shot lead at the top of the leaderboard after a sensational round of 62 on Friday. The American, who has two wins to his name already this season, shot the lowest round of the week and now finds himself in a great position with 36 holes to play.
As the BMW Championship is the final FedEx Cup playoff event before the Tour Championship, only 50 players are in the field this week. That number will be reduced to 30 for next week which means even those who have had poor starts to the tournament still have plenty to play for over the weekend, particularly as there is no cut line this week.
After a thrilling second day in Illinois, here is everything you need to know about how things stand ahead of day three at the BMW Championship.
BMW Championship leaderboard day three
Contents
Position/Player | Score | R1 | R2 | R3 | R4 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Max Homa (USA) | -10 | 68 | 62 | ||
2 | Chris Kirk (USA) | -8 | 66 | 66 | ||
T3 | Matt Fitzpatrick (ENG) | -7 | 66 | 67 | ||
T3 | Brian Harman (USA) | -7 | 65 | 68 | ||
T5 | Scottie Scheffler (USA) | -5 | 66 | 69 | ||
T5 | Rickie Fowler (USA) | -5 | 68 | 67 | ||
T5 | Harris English (USA) | -5 | 68 | 67 | ||
T5 | Justin Rose (ENG) | -5 | 70 | 65 | ||
T5 | Rory McIlroy (NIR) | -5 | 65 | 70 | ||
T10 | Patrick Cantlay (USA) | -4 | 68 | 68 | ||
Round two highlights
Max Homa breaks the course record
The star of the show on Friday around Olympia Fields was unquestionably Max Homa whose 62 was lower than anyone else has managed all week, or ever at Olympia Fields.. The 32-year-old did okay on Thursday, shooting two-under par but went up a gear on Friday and now has the solo lead by two shots ahead of Chris Kirk on -8.
The crazy thing about Homa’s round is that he still managed to drop two shots, meaning he probably feels as if he should have a four-shot lead at the top of the leaderboard. The highlight of his round was a stretch of five birdies in six holes at the beginning of the back nine. The job for Homa is now to simply retain his current lead over the next 36 holes.
Max Homa: 62, lowest score in any PGA Tour or major championship round at Olympia Fields
His 10 birdies today tie a career-high on Tour
His 4.32 strokes gained putting today is best in the field and a season-high for any round.
— Justin Ray (@JustinRayGolf) August 18, 2023
Kirk, Rose and Fitzpatrick battling for a place at the Tour Championship
Three men who are doing all they possibly can to force their way into next week’s Tour Championship are Chris Kirk, Justin Rose and Matt Fitzpatrick. Kirk, who came into the week 29th in the FedEx Cup standings has ensured his fate remains in his hands thanks to back-to-back rounds of 66. As things stand, he is projected to be in 8th position in the standings going into next week.
Rose and Fitzpatrick, on the other hand, started this week outside the top 30 which meant they had significant work to do in Illinois to qualify for the Tour Championship. After two rounds at the BMW Championship, Fitzpatrick is in a tie for 3rd and Rose is in a tie for 5th – if they can both maintain these positions, they will also make it through to next week’s finale.
McIlroy falls back
Rory McIlroy started this week exceptionally well and was in a tie for the first on the leaderboard after round one. Unfortunately for the Northern Irishman, he wasn’t able to replicate that form on day two and could only muster an even-par round of 70. Summarising his performance, which featured just one birdie and one bogey, the world number two said:
“Pretty mediocre, one birdie, one bogey. I gave myself tons of chances and I felt like I hit good putts but I just hit a lot of edges and the ball just sort of slid by. I don’t feel like I played too differently to how I played yesterday, I just got a bit more out of my round yesterday.”
Rahm’s woes continue
Jon Rahm started the 22/23 season as the man to beat, winning four tournaments in four months from January – April. Since his victory at the Masters, however, the Spaniard has had very little to shout about and has finished lower than 16th in four of his last six events.
On Friday, the world number three shot a four-over par round of 74 and is now firmly out of contention for the tournament. His early season form means his place at the Tour Championship is secure but the chances of him winning it currently look very slim.
Updated BMW Championship odds
- Max Homa – 15/8
- Rory McIlroy – 15/2
- Scottie Scheffler – 15/2
- Brian Harman – 11/1
- Matt Fitzpatrick – 11/1
- Chris Kirk – 12/1
- Patrick Cantlay – 22/1
Subscribe to Punditfeed on Google News for all the latest updates from the world of sports!
