We now know who will be joining Rory McIlroy and Scottie Scheffler in a new primetime event next month.
Golf Channel announced Monday the full lineup for the “Optum Golf Channel Games,” a made-for-TV tournament headlined by the world’s top two golfers, airing on Golf Channel and USA Network on Dec. 17 at Trump National Golf Club in Jupiter, Florida.
McIlroy and Scheffler will lead their respective teams of four. Team Rory will also consist of Shane Lowry, Luke Donald and Haotong Li. Team Scottie will include Keegan Bradley, Sam Burns and Luke Clanton. Ironically, both teams have a similar makeup: the stars are joined by one of their closest friends on tour (McIlroy/Lowry and Scheffler/Burns), their last Ryder Cup captains (Donald and Bradley) and, finally, a couple of wild cards in Li and Clanton, who are new to these types of televised events.
The format for this was announced in September and will consist of timed competition (driving, short game and alternative shots), a 14-club challenge (two players, a bag and elimination of used clubs) and a captain’s challenge between McIlroy and Scheffler.
You can read more about specific competition details here.
The Golf Channel Games debut comes a year after Scheffler and McIlroy teamed up to face LIV’s Bryson DeChambeau and Brooks Koepka in a more traditional 18-hole event played at Shadow Creek in Las Vegas on December 17, 2024.
According to Josh Carpenter of Sports Business Journalthat event drew just 625,000 viewers on TNT and TBS, which by comparison would rank as the second-lowest of any The Match event.
The start time for the Golf Channel Games has not yet been released.
