The 'Crypto.com Showdown': Predictions for McIlroy, Scheffler, Koepka and DeChambeau

Golf fans who are hungry for some high-stakes action are in luck. While the 2024 PGA schedule essentially ended with last weekend's Hero World Challenge, another significant matchup looms large.

Next Tuesday, PGA stars Rory McIlroy and Scottie Scheffler will face off against LIV stars Bryson DeChambeau and Brooks Koepka in the Crypto.com Showdown.

The 18-hole event will feel quite familiar to fans of TNT's 'The Match' series. It will be a player-driven event with an up-close-and-personal perspective. TNT Sports' Ernie Johnson and Charles Barkley will also provide commentary, as is usually the case in The Match.

Trevor Immelman, David Feherty, Bubba Watson and Lauren Jbara will also contribute during the broadcast.

What sets "The Showdown" apart from The Match is that the "multimillion dollar" prize purse will be paid out in cryptocurrency. From Crypto.com:

"Crypto.com's mission is to accelerate the world's transition to cryptocurrency and today's announcement is our latest effort by introducing the world's first major golf tournament with a purse in CRO cryptocurrency."

The Showdown will also reunite top competitors from different leagues who have only occasionally appeared on the course together recently. For fans of high-level golf, that's one big win before the competition even gets underway.

The Crypto.com Showdown

When: Tuesday, December 17

Where: MGM Resorts' Shadow Creek golf course in Las Vegas

When: 6 p.m. ET

TV and Live Stream: TNT and Max

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While a merger between LIV and the PGA may eventually happen, it hasn't occurred yet. Until it does, golf fans have been forced to watch some of their favorite stars compete separately, aside from events like the U.S. Open.

DeChambeau, by the way, defeated McIlroy by a single stroke to claim the 2024 U.S. Open.

DeChambeau, McIlroy, Scheffler and Koepka seem to hope that The Showdown will be an event that fans can truly enjoy and one that puts aside any PGA-LIV rivalry.

"We're going to do something basically outside of either tour, to give something back to the fans," McIlroy said, per Sean Zak of Golf.com.

The competition itself will feature 18 holes broken down into three six-hole stages. Teams will utilize a best-ball format in the first stage, alternate shots in the second stage and compete in singles play for the final stage.

Each section will carry a point value, and the team with the most points will win.

All four competitors are among the best in the sport, so this should be an extremely fun matchup for those watching at home. The variety of team formats makes it difficult to predict a winner, though it's hard not to give the edge to Scheffler and McIlroy.

Scheffler is unquestionably the top golfer in the world right now and is coming off a historic PGA season. He won seven tournaments in 2024, including The Masters and the PGA TOUR Championship.

McIlroy hasn't been as consistent this year, but he's still ranked third in the World Golf Rankings. DeChambeau and Koekpa are both elite golfers with Majors wins on their resumes. However, it's hard to envision anyone unseating Scheffler, even in a team event.

Prediction: Scheffler and McIlroy win