Live Competition Featuring Teams Led by Rory McIlroy and Scottie Scheffler on Golf Channel and USA Network, Wednesday, Dec. 17 Hosted at Trump National Golf Club in Jupiter, Fla., in Primetime Under the Lights
Never-Before-Seen Format Will Feature Timed Drive and Short Game Competitions, 14-Club Challenge, Team Relay, and Captains’ Challenge
“We’ve put together a collection of pretty good players, different personalities, different skillsets, and I think it’s going to be really cool to see us go up against each other in some of these different challenges.” – Rory McIlroy
“The clock will definitely be a factor in the Games and that’s something that we’re definitely not used to…it’ll be fun to interact through the competition while also trying to beat the clock.” – Scottie Scheffler
STAMFORD, Conn. – Dec. 10, 2025 – The Optum Golf Channel Games, featuring Rory McIlroy and Scottie Scheffler leading four-man teams competing in a series of unique challenges, tee off in one week on Wednesday, Dec. 17, live in primetime on Golf Channel and USA Network under the lights at Trump National Golf Club Jupiter in Jupiter, Fla.
McIlroy and Scheffler will compete head-to-head and captain two teams of world-class players at the Optum Golf Channel Games in the following timed and strategy-focused challenges under the pressure of the clock and the primetime lights:
| OPTUM GOLF CHANNEL GAMES ROSTERS | |
| TEAM RORY | TEAM SCOTTIE |
| Rory McIlroy | Scottie Scheffler |
| Shane Lowry | Keegan Bradley |
| Luke Donald | Sam Burns |
| Haotong Li | Luke Clanton |
The Optum Golf Channel Games will be comprised of the following challenges:
- Timed Drive Competition – Players compete in head-to-head duels with two minutes on the clock and must combine power and accuracy to launch drives into a scoring grid.
- Timed Short Game Competition – A combination of chipping and putting precision is required in the Short Game Challenge. Players hit shots from multiple locations around the green before tackling a putting gauntlet of putts from varying distances – with just three minutes to complete both challenges.
- 14-Club Challenge – Two Players, One Bag – Two teams of two players from each side will square off in the 14-Club Challenge, drawing a club from a single bag (including driver and putter) in a closest-to-the-pin competition from a designated distance in the fairway. All 14 clubs, seven shots per player per side – and once a club is used, it’s out. Each team will also pick a player to hit a lefty 15th shot.
- Team Relay – A four-player alternate shot on four holes with teammates staged on the tee (1), in the fairway (1), and around the green (2). Finish with the best score in the shortest amount of time…the clock is running!
- Captains’ Challenge – Rory vs. Scottie – Each player hits from predetermined locations. Shots will include iron shots from a variety of distances, as well as wedge, pitch, bunker shot, greenside shot, 30-ft putt, and 10-ft putt.
McIlroy, Scheffler, on-course reporter Smylie Kaufman, and event producer Mark Loomis previewed the event yesterday on a media conference call. Highlights below:
McIlroy on participating in the Optum Golf Channel Games: “The opportunity to showcase our game in a different way…This is an opportunity to do something different, lean into other sports in a way like the NFL Combine, or the three point contest in basketball or the Home Run Derby in baseball. It’s a chance to try something new, try something different.
And I think we’ve put together a collection of pretty good players, different personalities, different skillsets, and I think it’s going to be really cool to see us go up against each other in some of these different challenges.”
Scheffler: “I think it’s a really fun way to still get out there and compete and I hope it’s enjoyable for the fans as well. I think the clock will definitely be a factor in the games and that’s something that we’re definitely not used to. I’m definitely one of the guys on tour that likes to kind of operate at my own pace and in my own little world, and so it’ll be fun to kind of interact and have fun through the competition while also trying to beat the clock.”
McIlroy on if he has ever tried the Big Break flop wall before, which will be a part of the Optum Golf Channel Games: “Yeah, whenever Scottie and I do those TaylorMade shoots, they sort of make us do some fun stuff. They actually made me do a flop shot over Tiger last week, and I was probably as nervous as I’ve been in a long time. His body’s already banged up, I didn’t want to add to it. But, yeah, that was pretty funny.”
Scheffler on golf games he played growing up that could relate to the Optum Golf Channel Games: “If there was a pro, or member, or anybody on the driving range of Royal Oaks when I was growing up, I was trying to do something with them. I mean, you name it, chipping contests, nine-hole putting contests, 18-hole putting contests, trying to hit the yellow pole… if there was competition to be had growing up, I was challenging somebody, and it was always my favorite when the pros were out there. Guys like Harrison Frazar, Justin Leonard, Colt Knost…I definitely grew up being a fan of the Big Break, and we did some similar variations to that on the range I grew up on with the poles.”
McIlroy on who he may pick to shoot the left-handed shot in the 14-Club Challenge: “I definitely think the funniest person on my team is Haotong. He’s gonna come through with some amazing comments and one-liners, I’m sure. So it’ll be funny to see him try it left-handed.”
Kaufman on what he expects to see: “I think they’re gonna be laughing the entire time, too. When you have the Big Break wall coming out in the chipping challenge and then you have an alternate relay race that’s happening on the golf course, I think it’s gonna be hilarious at times. I think you’re gonna see some high-quality shots throughout all this, and I think the viewer, too, is just gonna enjoy going from one event to the next…anytime you can get Scottie and Rory going against each other, especially in the last challenge, I think just getting towards the end with these two guys being the captains.”
Loomis on production plans: “We have drones with tracers, everything will be traced, we have trackman, we have all the data that you need, so there’ll be a ton of technology around it… The whole key to this, and it’s one of the reasons why we have Smylie with Scottie’s team and Brad Faxon is going to be with Rory’s team, is if the players are having fun, then the viewer will have fun. And that’s what this is really all about – trying to figure out a way where they are competing against each other but in an enjoyable way.”
Current PGA TOUR player Keith Mitchell will serve as an analyst for coverage of the Optum Golf Channel Games alongside longtime Golf Channel commentator Steve Sands, who will provide play-by-play commentary.
Smylie Kaufman, Brad Faxon, and Johnson Wagner will serve as on-course commentators, providing insight and live interviews with players throughout the event.
Wagner will also contribute pre-and post-show analysis with Anna Jackson, who will anchor studio coverage on-site from Trump National Golf Club Jupiter. Golf media personality and University of Miami commit Kai Trump will be a special contributor to the broadcast, participating in challenge tutorials with Wagner as well as the trophy ceremony.
Emmy award-winning producers Mark Loomis and Chris Maguire will team up with Emmy award-winning director Jeff Jastrow to produce the first-of-its-kind television event. The Optum Golf Channel Games are being launched in association with PGA TOUR Studios and were created in partnership with EverWonder Studio and producer Bryan Zuriff.
About Golf Channel
Golf Channel – the first-ever single-sport cable network which was founded in 1995 and is now a part of Versant – delivers comprehensive live golf tournament, studio and shoulder programming. Golf Channel features more live coverage of the sport than all other U.S. television networks combined, including events across the PGA TOUR, LPGA Tour, USGA, R&A, DP World Tour, NCAA, and the Olympics, as well as news coverage via live morning programming and tentpole studio shows including Golf Today, Golf Central and the network’s critically-acclaimed Live From on-site pre- and post-round show at high-profile golf events.
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