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The BMW PGA Championship is set to take place from Thursday, September 14 to Sunday, September 17, at Wentworth Club, Virginia Water, Surrey, England. This will be the 69th edition of the premier event of the DP World Tour.
The 144-player field at Wentworth will feature the top players on the European circuit, such as Rory McIlroy, Jon Rahm, Viktor Hovland, Adrian Meronk, and Shane Lowry. However, many big names who did well in the last edition are absent from this week's action, mostly due to their switch to LIV Golf.
Here's a look at seven names missing from the 2023 BMW PGA Championship:
1) Talor Gooch
Talor Gooch made his debut at Wentworth last year and finished the week in fourth place after aggregating a 15-under, just two strokes short of the win.
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However, this ended up being his last appearance at the event and one of his last appearances on the European Tour, as the golfer had switched to LIV Golf by then. He has had a great season on the Saudi-backed circuit so far and has claimed three titles this year.
2) Patrick Reed
Just like Gooch, Patrick Reed is also not eligible to compete at this week's event. However, he has a pretty impressive record here, as he has never finished outside the top 5 at the BMW PGA Championship in his three starts. Last year, he finished T5 but his best result was a T3 finish in 2020.
3) Lee Westwood
Westwood is another veteran who will miss the BMW PGA Championship after switching to LIV Golf. Earlier this year, many players, including him, lost the lawsuit against the DP World Tour, and the court directed them to pay the fine. As a result, Westwood, along with a few other golfers, gave up their European Tour membership.
Lee Westwood has never won the BMW PGA Championship but has two runner-up finishes in his three-decade-long career on the European Tour.
4) Kurt Kitayama
Kurt Kitayama was present at last year's event and finished tied for 32. He was last seen competing at the BMW Championship on the PGA Tour, where he finished T41.
5) Sam Horsfield
The 26-year-old Englishman made a T18 finish at last year's BMW PGA Championship after aggregating a 11-under. However, his switch to the Saudi-backed circuit restricted him from playing in further European Tour events.
Horsfield also picked up an injury earlier this year and is currently out of action.
6) Thomas Pieters
Pieters is another great player who switched to LIV Golf earlier this year. He finished T23 at last year's BMW Championship. The 31-year-old Belgian golfer is a six-time winner on the DP World Tour.
7) Abraham Ancer
Abraham Ancer also decided to join the PIF-sponsored circuit last year. His only appearance at Wentworth came last year. He finished T18 and aggregated a 11-under after three rounds of golf.
Ancer won the WGC-FedEx St. Jude Invitational in 2021, which is his lone professional victory so far.
