McIlroy will once again team up with Shane Lowry at Harbour Town Golf Links for the annual team-format event, making his first appearance since becoming just the sixth player in golfing history to complete the career Grand Slam with his thrilling playoff victory at Augusta National.
Before his Masters breakthrough, McIlroy began his season on the DP World Tour, finishing tied for fourth at the Hero Dubai Desert Classic, having previously won the DP World Tour Championship in November.
After skipping last week’s RBC Heritage, where Justin Thomas claimed his first PGA Tour victory since 2022, McIlroy will return to action alongside Lowry in the team event they first agreed to play in during a “drunken” Ryder Cup lunch in 2024.
The duo won last year’s Zurich Classic via a playoff, edging Martin Trainer and Chad Ramey. The win was capped off by a memorable rendition of Journey’s Don’t Stop Believin’ from the champions.
The tournament features 80 two-man teams, beginning with fourball play in the first round—where both players play their own ball and the better score counts—followed by alternate-shot foursomes in round two. The top 33 teams and ties move on to the weekend, which sees a return to fourballs on Saturday and foursomes for the final round on Sunday.
If the tournament finishes in a tie after 72 holes, the playoff format will alternate between fourball and foursomes on each extra hole until a winner is decided.
