Back where it all started — and where he’s now paying it forward — Denver native Wyndham Clark hopes for big week in Colorado; Schauffele, Cantlay feel they’ll adjust just fine to altitude and unfamiliar venue
By Gary Baines – 8/20/2024
CASTLE ROCK — Things have come full circle for Wyndham Clark — and his Colorado roots — in more ways than one.
There’s the fact that the Denver native and Valor Christian graduate will compete in a PGA Tour event in Colorado for the first time in his career — the BMW Championship at Castle Pines Golf Club — after having accomplished so much in the Centennial State as an amateur. It’s where he captured a CGA Junior Stroke Play title and two state high school individual championships, where he won the CGA Amateur as a 16-year-old, and where he swept the Pac-12 Conference individual and team titles in 2017.
But it’s also where Clark started in the game and began to stand out as a kid — first at the now-long-closed nine-hole Mountain View Golf Course at I-25 and Belleview, then under John Tolan’s tutelage at Family Sports, then at Cherry Hills Country Club.
“It’s always fun coming home because I can see where my roots were and it keeps me grounded,” said Clark, who will be inducted into the Colorado Golf Hall of Fame on Dec. 1.
And that’s another way things are coming full circle as this year Clark and his Play Big Foundation began a five-year agreement to sponsor what was known in 2024 as the AJGA Colorado Junior at Walnut Creek Golf Preserve in Westminster. In the future, Clark’s name will be part of the event’s title.
“I grew up playing Colorado junior golf and AJGAs and every junior event in Colorado, so to be able to support what helped bring me up is something that’s close to me,” Clark told Colorado Golf Journal on Tuesday afternoon at Castle Pines. “I want to help those kids try to get to where I am — and get the opportunities that I had.”
Which brings us back to the BMW Championship, which starts on Thursday. As the No. 5-ranked player in the world, the 2023 U.S. Open champion and a three-time winner on the PGA Tour — plus being the only player in the 50-man field with strong Colorado ties — Clark will certainly be in the spotlight this week.
Clark blasts out of the sand on No. 17 during Tuesday’s practice round.
That comes with the territory when, in the last year and a half you’ve not only won three times on the PGA Tour but you’ve represented the U.S. at the Ryder Cup and the Olympics and almost certainly will again at next month’s Presidents Cup in Montreal against the International team. The six automatic qualifiers for the Presidents Cup will be finalized at the conclusion of the BMW Championship on Sunday, and Clark currently sits No. 4 in the standings.
“Anytime you can represent the red, white and blue, it’s amazing,” he said Tuesday. “It’s an amazing feeling to put on those colors and represent your country. It doesn’t matter what level it’s at, it’s important and it’s awesome. It’s so much fun. I feel like it’s the most fun you have in golf — playing for something other than just your own personal accolades — playing for your country and your teammates.
“I think this one will be equally as challenging and great.”
Clark is one of numerous athletes who grew up in Colorado and is making quite an impression in big-time sports of late. As he noted on Tuesday, another one is Christian McCaffrey, with whom Clark went to school at Valor Christian. McCaffrey finished third in NFL MVP voting following the 2023 season. Another is Derrick White of Parker, who helped the Boston Celtics win an NBA title a couple of months ago, then earned an Olympic gold medal as part of the U.S. men’s basketball team. White and Clark competed against one another on the basketball court quite a bit as youngsters and in high school.
“It’s really neat to kind of see of Colorado sports coming on the map with Derek, myself and Christian and some of the other Olympians,” Clark said. “It’s a good thing for Colorado. I feel like the sports are in a good spot here.”
If experience at Castle Pines will be a significant factor in determining the champion this week, Clark certainly has a leg up on most of his fellow competitors at the 2024 BMW Championship. He estimates he’s played Castle Pines roughly 30 times, while most of the other BMW qualifiers came into this week having never teed it up here.
In competition, the only golfers in the BMW field who have played Castle Pines during a PGA Tour event are Adam Scott (2000) and Jason Day (2006) — in The International. And Castle Pines has undergone considerable changes since then.
So does Clark have an advantage this week?
“Obviously I’ve played it more than anyone else,” he said. “But I didn’t grow up playing this course per se like every day. Yes, I know some of the nuances that maybe other people don’t know.
“Maybe where it shows up is altitude is tough to play at, and I’m not here that much playing golf. When I come back, I’m either seeing family, friends, I’m fishing or working with trainers. When I’m back, I don’t golf that much. So I’m a little rusty on my altitude game. But the good thing is I am used to it, and I feel like I have some tricks up my sleeve when I get into certain situations. Maybe it’ll come with shot selection and distance control.”
And Clark’s game seems to be a good shape. He struggled at the British Open with a bad missed cut, but other than that he’s performed well. In four of his last five tournaments, he’s finished no lower than 14th place. That one came at the Olympic tournament, where he had a disastrous start (bogey-double bogey-bogey) but no one in the field had a better cumulative final three rounds than he did.
“I’ve gone back to a little bit more of a process,” he said of the reason he’s played better of late after a lull in the early spring. “I think I was getting a little too outcome-focused. As I had some early success in the year and was playing amazing golf, I think I just got … too much into winning and trying to break through and win in some of those big events.
“Then I got away from everything that made me successful, and I feel like recently I’ve gotten back to the process of focusing on the things that got me here, and I’ve started to play good golf. … So I think my game is trending in the right direction.”
Rory McIlroy tested out the rough behind the eighth green on Tuesday.
Now the trick will be to parlay that good play and course knowledge into a good result — without falling victim to the pressure that comes with him being the “hometown player” this week. (Clark now resides in Scottsdale, Ariz., but still spends quite a bit of time in Colorado.)
“Obviously I want to do great,” he said. “I want to perform in front of my home crowd. But at the same time, there is a lot of expectation put on me and a lot of pressure. I’m trying to just enjoy it more than anything. We might not come back here (to Colorado for a PGA Tour event) for a long time, so I really just want to soak it in. If I play great, awesome; if not, I know I’m going to next week (the Tour Championship). I’m really just trying to enjoy the moment.”
Indeed, in another full-circle moment, Clark will be competing at Castle Pines this week after a couple of decades ago attending the PGA Tour’s International at the course.
“I grew up coming to this place and always dreamt of playing this tournament,” he said. “When they stopped playing here, it was kind of a stab to the heart for me because it was so fun coming out and watching it. To be back here playing in front of my home crowd is pretty special.”
So how many ticket requests did Clark receive in trying to accommodate friends and family this week at Castle Pines?
“A ton,” he said. “I’ve kind of had to limit it to mainly really close friends and family; otherwise we’d be giving out hundreds and hundreds of tickets. But I hope all those people still come out because it’s fun seeing friendly faces.”
Xander Schauffele on Tuesday at Castle Pines.
New Venue, Altitude Present Problems?: Back when The International was played at Castle Pines (1986-2006), a big topic of conversation every year was playing at more than 6,000 feet for that week when almost every other week of the PGA Tour season was spent at low altitude.
But with all the technology advances of the last decade or so, making the adjustment for this week’s BMW Championship shouldn’t be a major issue, according to Xander Schauffele, winner of two major championships in 2024. And that’s the case even though the great majority of players in the BMW field hadn’t played Castle Pines before this week.
“I can’t even imagine what it was like 25 years ago trying to figure out how to play at a golf course like this,” Schauffele said. “It would be a lot more difficult.”
But asked on Tuesday if Castle Pines presents any more or less challenges then any other first-time venue he might have learn in short order, Schauffle said:
“I think it’s pretty straightforward. The altitude is the tricky one. We played (with the wind) in off the left on 18. Just now, I was having lunch, and I looked and the flags are whipping in off the right. I think there’s going to be a little bit of that.
“When you’re in the trees and you can’t see many flags and all of a sudden the wind switches and it’s blowing 7 1/2 to 10 miles an hour and it switches sort of 45 degrees, that could cause some problems, especially when you’re coming over water on a few holes and hitting an 8-iron from 200 yards. That can get kind of weird. But other than that, no. I think it’s very fair. I think it’s very straightforward. There’s a few ways you can play it. You can be really aggressive off the tee or you can kind of be a little bit more defensive.”
Patrick Cantlay, twice a winner of the BMW Championship, also doesn’t see a significant issue — either with adjusting to the thin air — where balls might fly 10-15 percent further — or a course new to most Tour players.
“I don’t think so,” Cantlay said. “I think the altitude, with all the help we have with the TrackMans and the devices, it’s pretty easy to see how far it’s going. We learn new golf courses all the time, so I don’t think it’ll be too big of a change or too difficult.”
That said, the 8,130 yards at which Castle Pines GC is set up — the longest course on the PGA Tour since at least 1983 — presents a different issue.
“It’s a longer walk, I’ll tell you that,” Cantlay said. “There’s going to be some tired caddies at the end of this week with the uphill and the downhill and the 8,100 yards. The ball is going farther, but we’ve got to walk all that way. … There are some serious climbs out there.
Cantlay hasn’t competed in Colorado much, but did qualify — at Saddle Rock Golf Course in Aurora — for the 2010 U.S. Amateur, along with Wyndham Clark and Cody Kent.
Clark agrees that his fellow players will catch on fast with their adjustments, but there are some subtleties involved at Castle Pines.
“The tough thing with elevation is it’s not as consistent as sea level,” he said. “So if you hit your 7-iron always about 185 at sea level, it constantly goes 185. Here at altitude, it can go 205 one shot and then 210 the next shot and then 200 the next shot. There’s a little inconsistency in the thin air and altitude depending on how high you hit it.
“We’re all so good now and our books are so good, our information is so good, our teams are so good that I think guys just one time seeing the golf course have a really good idea for it. Now, some of the nuances of maybe angles into certain pins or maybe certain breaks that maybe I’m more comfortable with because I’ve been out here, they might not have.
“… I don’t think guys are going to be too far behind the 8-ball, but I like to think I have a little bit of an advantage, at least with being comfortable hitting the ball at altitude and the ball not curving as much and things like that.”
All Things Xander: Schauffele was his usual thoughtful and quotable self during his Tuesday visit to the media center. To wit:
— On the BMW Championship: “BMW just has this big-tournament feel. They spoil pretty much everybody on pretty much everyone’s team. I’m really happy to be here. It’s a pretty cool venue, very different. Just a big change from last week being in Memphis.”
— Comparing his season (two victories, both majors) with that of Scottie Scheffler (six PGA Tour victories, including a major, plus an Olympic title): “I’ve won two times and he’s won seven. We both have a lot of top 10s. That’s kind of how I’m drawing it up. But for me, as a competitor, I just have a lot of respect for him. He’s been playing unbelievable golf. I feel like we’re all just chasing him. I’ve done probably the best job of getting the closest to him, but it’s still very far away. Just a lot of credit to him and his team for putting together a really special year.”
— On the distances the ball travels in the thin air at more than 6,000 feet altitude: “The only weird thing we have sometimes is when you’re hitting over water and you’re hitting a 4-iron from 265 yards. It’s kind of weird when you think of it that way. It looks far away, but once you and your caddie break it down, the number you have in your head seems like you’re at sea level — for me at least.”
— On the FedExCup champion — in next week’s Tour Championship — receiving $25 million: “Winning $25 million would be really cool and really nice, but I don’t think it’s going to change my life, and I can tell you if I lose and play bad, I’m going to be pretty upset about playing bad and not being able to peak at the right time — more than losing money.”
— On the possibility of someday becoming the No. 1-ranked golfer in the world (he’s currently No. 2): “It’s a very big goal of mine. And I’ve been told, yes, that Scottie (Scheffler) is an outlier (with his amazing success this year). But (winning two majors in 2024) is not really good enough, is it (compared to Scheffler)? That doesn’t take away from what I’ve done or how I feel. I’m proud with the work that I’ve put in and with the people that are around me and that have helped me. Just result. I keep saying it, but it really is. I’m just going to keep knocking. That’s what I do.”
BMW Championship rules officials Mike Peterson (left) and Pete Lis (right) join CGA executive director Ed Mate at Castle Pines on Tuesday.
Pete Lis, Mike Peterson on the Rules at Castle Pines: Among the PGA Tour rules officials working this week’s BMW Championship at Castle Pines are two men who cut their teeth in the business in Colorado.
Pete Lis, the CGA’s director of rules and competitions from 2006 to 2013, will be on hand, as will Mike Peterson, a one-time tournament intern at the Colorado PGA. Ed Mate, the CGA’s longtime executive director, worked alongside both of them, and the three — along with CGA president Gary Albrecht — were chatting Tuesday morning near the Castle Pines clubhouse.
Lis and Peterson were promoted as rules officials from the Korn Ferry Tour to the PGA Tour at the end of 2020.
Pairings for First 2 Rounds: Tee times and pairings were finalized on Tuesday for the first two rounds at Castle Pines Golf Club. The top two-ranked players in the world — Scottie Scheffler and Xander Schauffele — will tee together off at 9 a.m. (MT) on Thursday and 11:20 a.m. on Friday. And Denver native Wyndham Clark will be paired with Rory McIlroy and go off at 11:10 a.m. Thursday and 9 a.m. Friday. Overall, tee times will run 7:25 to 11:40 a.m. both days, with everyone starting on No. 1. THURSDAY/FRIDAY TEE TIMES
Rory McIlroy (left) and Justin Thomas teeing off on No. 8 on Tuesday.
Notable: The two players in the BMW Championship with the most PGA Tour victories — Rory McIlroy (26) and Justin Thomas (15) — played part of a practice round together on Tuesday. … Thursday’s opening ceremony – where Amanda Hawkins will perform the national anthem and a flyover by four F-16 fighter jets from the Colorado Air National Guard will take place – is now scheduled to be held between tee times, at 8:27 a.m. … Below are the revised tee times and pairings for Wednesday’s pro-am:
About the Writer: Gary Baines has covered golf in Colorado continuously since 1983. He was a sports writer at the Daily Camera newspaper in Boulder, then the sports editor there, and has written regularly for ColoradoGolf.org since 2009. The University of Colorado Evans Scholar alum was inducted into the Colorado Golf Hall of Fame in 2022. He owns and operates ColoradoGolfJournal.com
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BMW CHAMPIONSHIP: THE ESSENTIALS
What: The BMW Championship, the second of three PGA Tour FedExCup Playoff events in 2024.
When: Thursday-Sunday championship rounds. Wednesday pro-am round. Note: Gates open at 7 a.m. Wednesday through Friday and 6:30 a.m. on Saturday and Sunday.
Where: Castle Pines Golf Club in Castle Rock, opened in 1981 and designed by Jack Nicklaus. Castle Pines GC hosted the PGA Tour’s International from 1986 through 2006. Colorado Sports Hall of Famer Jack Vickers founded Castle Pines GC and The International.
Purse: $20 million, with the winner receiving $4 million.
Beneficiary: All the net proceeds from the BMW Championship benefit the Evans Scholars Foundation for caddies. Evans Scholarships, worth an estimated average of $125,000, are awarded by high-achieving teenage caddies with significant financial need.
Defending Champion: Viktor Hovland.
Course Setup: A PGA Tour-record length (since at least 1983) of 8,130 yards (Par-72). Green speed on Stimpmeter: 13. 77 bunkers and 10 water hazards.
Junior Clinic: 4 p.m. on Wednesday.
History of Event in Colorado: The BMW Championship has been held once before in the Centennial State, in 2014 at Cherry Hills Country Club.
Tickets/Military Honors: For information, CLICK HERE. Note: Kids 15 and under receive complimentary grounds admission when accompanied by a ticketed adult (2 juniors per adult). Also, active-duty military, along with military retirees, active reserves and veterans can also be admitted free to the tournament after obtaining passes at bmwchampionship.com . Spectators with military tickets for and Wednesday will have access to the Nicklaus Club, a climate-controlled lounge equipped with a PXG golf simulator, complimentary food and drinks and seating overlooking the iconic par-3 16th hole.
Format: 50-player field. No cut. The top 30 in the season-long point standings after the BMW Championship will advance to the Tour Championship.
TV Schedule: Thursday and Friday: noon-5 p.m., Golf Channel; Saturday and Sunday: 11 a.m.-1 p.m., Golf Channel; 1-4 p.m., NBC. Dan Hicks, Kevin Kisner, Terry Gannon and Brad Faxon will call the action at different times from Castle Pines.
General Information about BMW Championship: CLICK HERE.