Local fan favorite Jordan Spieth highlights a group of major champions as the draw for the World Golf Championships-Dell Technologies Match Play was conducted Monday morning.
The field is divided into 16 four-player groups that will begin three days of round-robin play Wednesday at the Pete Dye-designed Austin Country Club in Texas. The top 16 players in the Official World Golf Ranking who are in the field are the top seeds in each group; each group was filled out randomly.
The three-time major champion Spieth, the 11th seed, is joined by 2013 Masters champion Adam Scott, 2013 U.S. Open champion Justin Rose and 2011 PGA Championship winner Keegan Bradley.
Defending champion Billy Horschel, who defeated Scottie Scheffler, 2 and 1, in last year’s final, is the 12th seed and grouped with Thomas Pieters, AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-am winner Tom Hoge and Min Woo Lee.
Scheffler, another local favorite and winner of the WM Phoenix Open and Arnold Palmer Invitational earlier this year, is the No. 5 seed and will face a trio of Englishman in group play — Matt Fitzpatrick, Tommy Fleetwood and Ryder Cup warrior Ian Poulter.
World No. 1 and reigning U.S. Open champion Jon Rahm has U.S. Ryder Cup hero Patrick Reed, Cameron Young and Sebastian Munoz in his group.
Sixth-seed Justin Thomas, who tied for third in last week’s Valspar Championship, will have to deal with Kevin Kisner, the 2019 champion and 2018 runner-up; Marc Leishman; and Luke List, who won the Farmers Insurance Open earlier this year.
Eight-time PGA Tour winner Bryson DeChambeau is the ninth seed and grouped with Talor Gooch, Lee Westwood and Richard Bland. DeChambeau has not played on the PGA Tour since the Farmers Insurance Open in January. He was in the field for the Arnold Palmer Invitational and The Players Championship but withdrew with a wrist injury before play began.
The strongest group based on seeding features Louis Oosthuizen (10th seed), Paul Casey (19), Corey Conners (36) and Alex Noren (50).
After pool play, the format turns to single elimination beginning Saturday.
Four of the top 12 players in the world are not in the field – Players Champion Cameron Smith (No. 6), four-time major winner Rory McIlroy (8th), last week’s Valspar Championship winners, Sam Burns (10th) and reigning Masters champion Hideki Matsuyama (12th).
WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play groups
(Seed in parentheses)
