The date and location for the much-anticipated PGA Tour vs LIV Golf match have been set. The showdown will feature Rory McIlroy and Scottie Scheffler going head-to-head with Brooks Koepka and Bryson DeChambeau.
The 18-hole matchplay event, aptly named “The Showdown,” is scheduled to take place at Shadow Creek in Las Vegas on December 17. TNT will broadcast the event in the United States, which means it’s likely to be available on Discovery+ in the UK.
McIlroy, a four-time world champion, currently ranks third globally and will team up with reigning Masters champion and world No. 1 Scheffler.
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Representing LIV are five-time major champion Koepka and 2024 US Open winner DeChambeau, who were once fierce rivals on the course but now aim to secure a win for the breakaway circuit. This made-for-TV event unfolds against the backdrop of ongoing merger talks between their respective bosses.
The PGA Tour is looking to strike an investment deal with the Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund (PIF), which launched LIV Golf in 2022 and lured several top PGA Tour stars. The outcome has led to a split at the elite level, with McIlroy, previously one of LIV’s harshest critics, now leading the charge for the PGA Tour and PIF to finalize a deal that would reunify men’s professional golf.
Currently, players from the rival tours only compete at a handful of events each year, including the majors. However, a merger could provide more opportunities for the world’s best players to regularly compete against each other.
Scottie Scheffler (R) and Rory McIlroy’s (L) (
Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)
In 2023, a “framework agreement” was reached but ironing out the details has proven to be a painstaking process, leading to fan exasperation. During the Irish Open, McIlroy expressed his hope that “The Showdown” might show PGA Tour and LIV Golf leaders what’s possible if they could agree.
“I wouldn’t say it’s meant to send a message. It’s more we wanted to do something that, I guess, all golf fans could get excited about,” McIlroy stated. “You’ve got the best player in the world. You’ve got two guys in Bryson and Brooks that have won majors in the last two years.
“You’ve got me in there who… I haven’t done what those guys have done the last couple of years, but I’ve definitely been, I feel, one of the best players in the world.
“It’s a way to show golf fans in the world that this is what could happen or these are the possibilities going forward. I’ve been saying this for a long time. I think golf and golf fans get to see us together more than four times a year.
“I think that’s what we’ve tried to do. It’s in the middle of December. There’s not a lot going on in the game of golf. So trying to get people excited about something before the season starts again. I think we all thought it was a good idea and something that hopefully is a sign of things to come in the future.”
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