JJ Spaun revealed he played with a 'huge chip on his shoulder' during his BMW PGA Championship victory, using being snubbed by Team USA's Presidents Cup side as motivation. The win made Spaun the first player since Byeong Hun An in 2015 to claim the DP World Tour's flagship event on debut, posting a final-round 67 for a two-shot victory over Rory McIlroy, Aaron Rai, Adam Scott and Manuel Elvira.

Spaun was controversially overlooked for a captain's pick by Brandt Snedeker, receiving news via a brief 45-second phone call after the Tour Championship. Despite good conversations with Snedeker during qualification, Spaun believed he would make the team.

'The extra motivation, I think that is the willpower that you have,' Spaun said. 'Being left off the Presidents Cup team a couple weeks ago was very disappointing and I wanted to prove that I deserve to be on that team.' The victory serves as statement response to his exclusion.