Max Baulcomb assesses the forthcoming event…
Ahead of next month’s BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth, it has been confirmed that Ian Poulter, Henrik Stenson, Sergio Garcia and Paul Casey will play no part.
Course designer Ernie Els has made big changes to Wentworth in recent years and the alterations have been met with disapproval by some players.
Poulter’s absence has caused a bit of a storm with him taking to Twitter to explain his reasons for not playing in the European Tour’s flagship event.
“I’ve played 13 PGAs at Wentworth and had 1 Top 10. I’ve had 8 MC (missed cuts). Would Usain Bolt compete in a marathon? I didn’t think so… Enough said,” Poulter tweeted.
Poulter’s argument is understandable as he has a poor record at Wentworth and with a busy schedule to manage, it makes sense to miss a tournament which he doesn’t feel confident of winning.
However, he has been criticised by fans who argue that he has a poor record in the major tournaments, yet he shows no sign of pulling out of them.
Similarly to Poulter, Stenson has pulled out as his record in the event highlights that he doesn’t care much for Wentworth.
The absence of Casey is surprising as he has happier memories of the competition, winning the PGA Championship back in 2009.
In Garcia’s case, his decision not to compete comes down to the fact that he is taking part in the Irish Open at Royal County Down, which takes place a week after the PGA Championship.
World No 1 Rory McIlroy will be back to defend his BMW PGA Championship title when the event gets under way on May 21.
He faces stiff competition with world No 9 Justin Rose and USA’s Patrick Reed among the challengers looking to win the event that carries a lucrative prize fund of five million euros.