LIV Golf’s Bryson DeChambeau and Brooks Koepka will face the PGA Tour’s Rory McIlroy and Scottie Scheffler in a head-to-head match Tuesday, Dec. 17 in Las Vegas.
The highly anticipated made-for-TV exhibition was first reported in September by Golfweek, with details of the course and date unclear. Now the December match is officially set, and the four multiple-time major champions will play at Shadow Creek Golf Course. The MGM Resort course hosted the 2018 match between Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson and the PGA Tour’s relocated CJ Cup in 2020. It has also been home to the LPGA’s match play event since 2021.
The Scheffler/McIlroy versus Koepka/DeChambeau event has been dubbed “The Showdown.”
Broadcast details surrounding the LIV versus PGA Tour match will be announced at a later date, but a prime-time TV window is to be expected with golf exhibitions of this nature. The Athletic confirmed the match would be broadcast on TNT, which has hosted nine iterations of a golf exhibition series called “The Match.” Koepka, McIlroy and DeChambeau have each participated in “The Match” franchise, while Scheffler will play in a made-for-TV match for the first time.
BZ Entertainment, the creator of “The Showdown,” has promised to deliver a “high-stakes” format with 18-hole head-to-head match play, reminiscent of the traditions of the Ryder Cup and Presidents Cup.
“We all want to see more of the best golfers in the world going head-to-head, battling it out on the back nine of a tournament,” McIlroy said. “At a time where the professional game has felt divided, we believe this event can bring fans an incredible day of entertainment.”
The four participating players hold a combined 13 major championship titles. Scheffler is coming off a historic season on the PGA Tour, with seven wins, including the 2024 Masters. DeChambeau captured his second major at the 2024 U.S. Open at Pinehurst. In 2023, Koepka won his fifth major, surpassing McIlroy’s four at the PGA Championship. With four majors and 26 PGA Tour wins, McIlroy is seeking the end of a 10-year-long major championship drought.
Although the PGA Tour, the Saudi PIF (LIV Golf’s backer) and the DP World Tour signed a momentous “framework agreement” on Jun. 6, 2023, the men’s professional golf landscape remains divided. Negotiations are happening behind closed doors, with “regular dialogue” between the parties, according to PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan. There is no deadline for a finalized agreement, but “The Showdown” is a promising sign of LIV and PGA Tour representatives collaborating for fan engagement.
(Photo: Tracy Wilcox / PGA TOUR via Getty Images)
