Memorial Tournament 2013: Tee Times, Date and TV Schedule

The Memorial Tournament at Muirfield Village is one of the most prestigious events on the PGA Tour, simply because it's hosted by the legendary Jack Nicklaus.

Another living golf icon, Tiger Woods, has won the event five times and is the defending champion. Woods mounted a vintage rally, birdieing three of his last four holes and dramatically chipping in on the par-three 16th to win by two strokes.

That marked Woods' 73rd PGA Tour victory—tied for second with the Golden Bear in that category. Nicklaus and Woods aren't exactly pals, though. Filip Bondy of the New York Daily News documented what Nicklaus said about their relationship during The Masters:

"

I never really had a conversation with Tiger that lasted more than a minute or two, ever...He stayed away from me from a conversation standpoint...I’ve said, "Hello, how are you doing? Nice playing this year. You’ve played very well." End of conversation. People ask me, "Has Tiger ever talked to you about the record?" Never one word.

"

Woods has even declined invitations to play Nicklaus' home course in Florida, and from what Nicklaus has heard, it's because of Woods' pursuit of the major championship record held by Nicklaus.

There are plenty of other world-class players in the field this week in Dublin too. Let's take a look at where to catch the action and the top groups to watch as the tournament takes shape over the first couple of days.

When: Thursday, May 30, to Sunday, June 2

Where: Muirfield Village Golf Club, Dublin, Ohio

Tee Times: First group is off at 7:20 a.m. ET. For a complete list of tee times for the first two rounds, visit PGATour.com.

Par: 72

Yards: 7,265

Purse: $6.2 million

FedEx Cup Points: 500

TV Schedule

Thursday: Golf Channel 2:30-6:30 p.m. ET

Friday: Golf Channel 2:30-6:30 p.m. ET

Saturday: Golf Channel 12:30-2:30 p.m. ET, CBS 3-6 p.m. ET

Sunday: Golf Channel 12-2 p.m. ET, CBS 2:30-6 p.m. ET

For further information, visit the tournament's official website.

Groups to Watch

No. 16: Adam Scott, Ernie Els and Charl Schwartzel

How's this for a mind-blowing trio? Scott essentially handed Els the Claret Jug at the British Open last season, squandering a four-shot lead with four holes to play to lose in regulation at Royal Lytham and St. Annes.

That didn't stop Scott from coming back relatively strong to tie for 11th at the PGA Championship, and then he finally broke through by winning The Masters in April for his maiden major title. It allowed him to reascend to his career-best world ranking of No. 3.

As if that wasn't enough intrigue to add to the group, Schwartzel is in the mix as well. The 2011 Masters champion has been inconsistent this season. After a third-place effort at the HP Byron Nelson Championship, he missed the cut last week.

Still, Schwartzel is a force to be reckoned with because he ranks 36th in greens in regulation percentage and 28th in strokes gained putting.

Three major winners occupying the Muirfield Village fairways alongside each other should make for wonderful entertainment. Amazingly, this won't be the only such grouping.

No. 17: Rory McIlroy, Bubba Watson and Justin Rose

Though he still has a firm grip on the No. 2 ranking behind Woods, it's been a difficult, winless campaign for McIlroy in 2013.

Hope may be on horizon, though, because he's apparently switching back to his trusted Scotty Cameron putter after struggles with the Nike Method, per PGATour.com's Jonathan Wall:

The U.S. Open is quickly approaching, and McIlroy is coming off of a missed cut at the European Tour's BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth. McIlroy missed the cut there last year, didn't crack the weekend at the Memorial and proceeded to MC at the second major as well.

Watson has had an even worse go at it thus far. With the exception of the Hyundai Tournament of Champions, which has a limited field, he hasn't had a top 10 in a stroke play event.

Considering his ridiculous length, it's hard to believe Watson ranks 110th in par-five performance. If he can get that back on track, his game could improve very suddenly.

A hot month of March has been followed up by lackluster play from Rose. The Englishman is continuing to stripe it but has had an abysmal run on the greens. He must conjure up some flatstick magic to avoid a prolonged slump in mediocrity.

No. 28: Tiger Woods, Keegan Bradley and Fred Couples

As mentioned before, there is more than one group of three that have major championships on their respective individual resumes.

Plenty has been said about Woods already, but think about this: He's won four times in seven starts this season. That's a staggering winning percentage, and it's mainly because Woods is putting better than ever.

Considering Woods' unmatched ability to captivate a gallery and his playing competitors, this will be the most followed group.

Bradley fired an electric opening round of 60 at the HP Byron Nelson Championship and finished runner-up to get his year back on track. He has immense popularity of his own and the competitive fire to rival Woods.

And who doesn't love Fred Couples?

There's a unique link between Woods and Couples in the form of Couples' former caddy, Joe LaCava, who carries the bag for Woods now. Golf Channel's Kelly Tilghman ponders whether there might be a mix-up during the first two days.

Here's another Couples question: Who says he doesn't have anything left in the tank at age 53? Robert Lusetich of FOX Sports highlights an incredible current statistic.

That won't likely hold up over time because of Couples' limited PGA Tour schedule, but it's impressive nevertheless. His positive experience at this venue as the 1998 winner will only help, and perhaps Bradley can take some notes to apply and attempt to maintain his recent strong form.  

Note: All statistics and past finishes, unless otherwise indicated, are courtesy of PGATOUR.com.