BMW Championship 2012: Analyzing Biggest Threats to Tiger Woods & Rory McIlroy

Through one round completed at the 2012 BMW Championship, it looks like we're in for a captivating tournament with Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy atop the leaderboard.

After a win at last week's Deutsche Bank Championship, McIlroy carried that momentum to an eight-under score of 64 and a tie for the lead.

Not to be outdone, Woods followed suit, shooting a nearly as brilliant 65 and is tied with Vijay Singh for fifth place. 

Regardless, with all eyes on the world's two most talented golfers, there are some stars falling by the wayside that should challenge Woods and McIlroy over the next three rounds. 

Here's a look at the golfers that pose the biggest threat going forward. 

Luke Donald

The world's No. 2 golfer slides under the radar by playing a limited PGA schedule every season and this year is no different.

Coming into the BMW Championship after struggling at the Deutsche Bank last week, Donald fired off an impressive six-under score of 66 to put him one stroke behind Woods and two behind McIlroy.

Usually a bastion of consistency on the green, Donald struggled with the putter on Thursday. Putting at a rate of 1.7 per hole, the 34-year-old had to rely on strong iron play for his low score.

Ostensibly things should revert to the norm on Friday and over the weekend. 

Though the Englishman has just one win in 2012 at March's Transitions Championship, he's come away in the top 10 of two of his last three BMW championships. 

With an impressive opening round that still leaves him room for improvement, Donald is the most talented dark horse in the world. And if Woods and McIlroy aren't careful, he could sneak up and steal the tournament.

Dustin Johnson

After an impressive four-under score of 32 on his first nine holes, it looked like the 2010 BMW Championship winner would sit near or at the top of the leaderboard on Thursday.

Johnson's even-par second half of his day ended those aspirations, but there was still more than one reason for hope for him going forward.

For one, there was no overarching reason the 28-year-old struggled on the front nine (Johnson started his day at hole No. 10). Driving with distance and accuracy, you would think Johnson's irons or putter failed him on Thursday, but that wasn't the case. The 28-year-old American hit 72.2 percent of his greens in regulation and putted a relatively average 1.5 times per hole in the first round. 

It just seemed Johnson was a victim of more bad luck than anything. Instead of misses that force a par scramble, his were big, score-costing mistakes. For Johnson, it was his par on the par-five fifth that had to sting the most.

Going forward, however, that means there are no massive holes for Johnson to fill in his game. And when Johnson is on, there are very few more dangerous golfers in the world.

Justin Rose

After tying for 46th at the Barclays and getting cut at Deutsche Bank, there was no one that needed a trip to Crooked Stick more than Rose.

The champion at last season's BMW Championship, Rose picked right back up where he left off Thursday, shooting a five-under 67. That's good for a 10th-place tie and puts the 32-year-old in a perfect position heading into the last three rounds.

Rose was a bastion of iron accuracy on Thursday, nailing an astounding 88.9 greens in regulation. 

He's comfortable at Crooked Stick and it shows with the confidence he displays at every tee. Until someone else walks away with the championship Sunday, Rose is the biggest threat in the field.