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Rory McIlroy and Scottie Scheffler will take on Brooks Koepka and Byson DeChambeau in a grudge match between PGA Tour stars and LIV Golfers in December.
Crunch talks between the parties continue as they try to hash out a sustainable future for golf, but in the meantime there have been efforts to present a united front and a thawing of frosty relations between the rival tours.
Jay Monahan, the PGA Tour commissioner, and Yasir Al-Rumayyan, the governor of the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund (PIF) which bankrolls LIV, played alongside each other at Carnoustie recently in the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship.
And the battle between Ryder Cup rivals McIlroy and Scheffler against old foes Koepka and DeChambeau, dubbed The Showdown, will signal another step towards uniting the warring golf world.
When is The Showdown?
The match between McIlroy-Scheffler and Koepka-DeChambeau is scheduled to take place on Tuesday 17 December at Shadow Creek Golf Club in Las Vegas.
What time will it start?
The start time has not yet been released, but it is expected that the players will tee off in the early afternoon in order to conclude in the evening, in an effort to capture the largest US viewership. That means British fans can expect The Showdown to begin at around 7-9pm GMT.
🚨🆚⛳️ #NEW DETAILS: Rory McIlroy & Scottie Scheffler vs. Brooks Koepka & Bryson DeChambeau will take place on December 17th at Shadow Creek. @FOS with more details below:
— NUCLR GOLF (@NUCLRGOLF) October 9, 2024
— New entity is called ‘The Showdown’ and different from ‘The Match’ franchise
— Format still being… pic.twitter.com/xPWM3Yehjt
What is the format?
A number of details including the format are yet to be announced by organisers, but it is has been confirmed that The Showdown will take place over 18 holes. Similar exhibition events in the past have been scored by match play, rather than stroke play, but each iteration has varied.
How to watch
The Showdown will be broadcast live by TNT Sports in the UK.
Prediction
On paper, Scheffler and McIlroy should have a slight edge, and perhaps a slightly more workable on-course chemistry than Koepka and DeChambeau, who have not always seen eye to eye but have grown friendlier in recent years. These one-off exhibitions don’t always go to the form book, and format could yet play a part, but we expect the PGA Tour duo to get the win.
