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The game between McIlroy/Scheffler and Koepka/DeChambeau has a name, a date and a place

The game between McIlroy/Scheffler and Koepka/DeChambeau has a name, a date and a place

Bryson DeChambeau and Rory McIlroy, here in 2020, will meet again on the golf course this December. (Tom Pennington/Getty Images)

Bryson DeChambeau and Rory McIlroy, here in 2020, will meet again on the golf course this December. (Tom Pennington/Getty Images)

A lasting reunification of golf seems a long way off, but some of the PGA Tour and LIV Golf's biggest stars have their own plans for direct competition.

Rory McIlroy and Scottie Scheffler of the PGA Tour and Bryson DeChambeau and Brooks Koepka of LIV Golf have already announced plans to battle it out in a made-for-television event. As Golfweek first reported, we now have a name, a date and a venue.

“The Showdown” — presented by some of the same people who created “The Match,” the ongoing celebrity golf series — takes place Tuesday, Dec. 17, at Shadow Creek Golf Course in Las Vegas. The game will be broadcast on TNT, likely in prime time on the East Coast.

“This is not just a competition between some of golf's greatest champions; “It is an event designed to energize fans,” McIlroy said in a statement announcing the event. “We are all here to put on a great show and contribute to a goodwill event that brings the best together again.”

There is a long history between all these players. All four are multiple major winners, with Koepka's five leading the way, followed by McIlroy's four and Scheffler and DeChambeau's two. Most recently, McIlroy and DeChambeau fought for the 72nd hole of the US Open. Koepka and DeChambeau were involved in a high-profile war of words before both moved to LIV Golf. With his spectacular 2024, Scheffler has overshadowed the recent successes of the other three.

Negotiations between the PGA Tour and Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund, LIV Golf's backer, have yet to result in a reunification despite lofty promises made more than a year ago. If The Showdown is a success, it could spur both sides to find common ground as fans' interest in reuniting the game would be clear. Currently, most PGA Tour and LIV golfers only cross paths at the four majors of the year and only when they are eligible to play in those events.

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