Rory McIlroy, Scottie Scheffler to Play Brooks Koepka, Bryson DeChambeau in Match

The made-for-TV competition pitting stars of LIV Golf against the PGA Tour will be in December in Las Vegas.
Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy will play Brooks Koepka and Bryson DeChambeau in a match in December in Las Vegas.
Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy will play Brooks Koepka and Bryson DeChambeau in a match in December in Las Vegas. / USA TODAY Sports

We won’t have to wait until the Masters to see U.S. Open combatants Rory McIlroy and Bryson DeChambeau square off again.

The duo will be part of a four-player match including two other major champions, Scottie Scheffler and Brooks Koepka, in December.

According to Golfweek, Scheffler and McIlroy will take on DeChambeau and Koepka in a made-for-TV match to be played at a Las Vegas course.

Because DeChambeau and Koepka compete for LIV Golf, they are not permitted to play in PGA Tour events, thus meaning some of the best in the game are coming together only at the four major championships, pending some sort of long-sought deal between the PGA Tour and the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia, which funds LIV Golf.

The event will bring together players who have combined to win 13 major championships.

According to Golfweek, the event will air on TNT, which has been the home for several of the franchise “The Match” encounters. TNT has yet to make any of the details official.

“I’m thrilled to partner with Scottie in what promises to be an exciting duel against Bryson and Brooks in Vegas this December,” McIlroy told Golfweek. “This isn’t just a contest between some of golf’s major champions; it’s an event designed to energize the fans. We’re all here to put on a great show and contribute to a goodwill event that brings the best together again.”

The PGA Tour would need to give its blessing via a media release and has yet to comment publicly.

Scheffler, who won seven times on the PGA Tour this year and captured the FedEx Cup on Sunday, won the Masters in April. DeChambeau prevailed in a tense final-day duel with McIlroy at the U.S. Open, where final-hole dramatics saw a McIlroy bogey followed by a DeChambeau up-and-down from a bunker for par to seal his second U.S. Open title. McIlroy won three times worldwide this year but has not won a major title in 10 years.

Koepka had a relatively quiet 2024, having won two LIV Golf events but not factoring in any of the major championships. He won his fifth major title last year when he won the PGA Championship at Oak Hill.

The players will be paid for their participation but it is unclear if it is in the form of prize money and if any charitable aspect will be involved.


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Bob Harig
BOB HARIG

Bob Harig is a senior writer covering golf for Sports Illustrated. He has more than 25 years experience on the beat, including 15 at ESPN. Harig is a regular guest on Sirius XM PGA Tour Radio and has written two books, "DRIVE: The Lasting Legacy of Tiger Woods" and "Tiger and Phil: Golf's Most Fascinating Rivalry." He graduated from Indiana University where he earned an Evans Scholarship, named in honor of the great amateur golfer Charles (Chick) Evans Jr. Harig, a former president of the Golf Writers Association of America, lives in Clearwater, Fla.