BMW Championship kicks off with dedication of “Caves Valley Golf Club Evans Scholarship House”.

+++ New Scholarship House at the University of Maryland in College Park provides space for 38 scholars +++ All proceeds from the BMW Championship benefit the Evans Scholars Foundation +++ Support has exceeded $60 million since 2007 +++ BMW Chief People and Places Officer Ilka Horstmeier: “Sports and education are the foundation for equal opportunities and social participation” +++

College Park. This week, the BMW Championship is taking place at the Caves Valley Golf Club (Owings Mills, Maryland, USA). As the penultimate playoff tournament of the PGA TOUR, featuring the top 50 players in the season standings (FedExCup), it is one of the most prestigious golf events worldwide. Beyond the competitive battle for the coveted title and qualification for the season final, the BMW Championship focuses on its commitment to education. All profits from the tournament benefit the Evans Scholars Foundation (ESF) of the event organizer, Western Golf Association (WGA). Since the inaugural BMW Championship in 2007, the tournament has raised more than $60 million and helped award more than 4,000 full tuition and housing college scholarships for caddies.

The commitment of the ESF and the support provided by the BMW Championship are life-changing for the scholars who would otherwise be unable to afford a college education. At the University of Maryland in College Park, just north of the U.S. capital Washington, up to 38 additional young caddies will have the opportunity to study and live on campus free of charge. At the start of BMW Championship week, the WGA, in the presence of Ilka Horstmeier, Member of the Board of Management of BMW AG, People and Places, along with other special guests, Maryland Evans Scholars and their families, inaugurated the new “Caves Valley Golf Club Evans Scholarship House”.

“The BMW Group believes that sports and education form the foundation for equal opportunities and social participation – and the Evans Scholars Foundation is a marvelous initiative working precisely in this direction,” said Ilka Horstmeier. “The empowering force of education is the key to a self-determined future. We are proud of our longstanding partnership with the Western Golf Association, and of the great impact that the BMW Championship makes in the lives of so many young scholars.”

The 10,000-square-foot Scholarship House features two levels of space for studying and recreation. In addition to featuring a state-of-the-art living and learning environment, the facility has the capacity to house 38 scholars. The foundation for this project was laid during the 2021 BMW Championship, which also took place at the Caves Valley Golf Club. Four years ago, this initiative was brought into focus, and through the collaboration of all parties involved, it was successfully realized in such a short time.

“This Scholarship House represents a tremendous opportunity not only for the 21 Evans Scholars who will attend Maryland this fall, but for generations of promising caddies to come,” said WGA Chairman Steve Colnitis. “Today marks the beginning of the next bright chapter for the Evans Scholars at the University of Maryland.”

This fall, a record 1,260 Evans Scholars will be enrolled at 27 leading universities nationwide. There are more than 12,500 Evans Scholars Alumni since the Program began in 1930.

The support of the ESF through the BMW Championship is part of the BMW Group global commitment in golf for equal opportunities. Through its “Eagles for Education” initiative, the BMW Group supports the Golf Foundation at the BMW PGA Championship (England) and the Philipp Lahm Foundation for Sport and Education at the BMW International Open (Germany). When it comes to its the global amateur tournament series, the BMW Golf Cup, the BMW Group collaborates with JOBLINGE in Germany and with UNICEF at the World Final under the “Eagles for Education” initiative.