(Getty)
For the first time since last year’s Ryder Cup, and for the first time at an official PGA Tour event in about 36 years, golf will be a team sport this week at the 2017 Zurich Classic.
Made up of 80 two-player teams (you can find the complete list of teams below, and you can go here for the odds), the 72-hole tournament will feature foursomes (alternate shot) on Thursday and Saturday, and four-ball (best ball) on Friday and Sunday. As is the norm, the cut will be made after the second round, with the Top 35 teams (and ties) advancing to play the weekend.
Henrik Stenson and Justin Rose, who are 4-2 playing together in the Ryder Cup, are regarded as the favorites, but they’ll have plenty of competition, as many of the world’s top players have lined up to play the new format. Rickie Fowler and Jason Day are the only other tandem to have both players ranked inside the Top 10. Jordan Spieth, thanks to a bet, will pair with Ryan Palmer, who has looked strong over the last two weeks. Louis Oosthuizen and Branden Grace will have the South African connection, Brooks and Chase Koepka will have the brother connection, and Daniel Berger and Thomas Pieters will have the young gun connection.
Ultimately, it should be an entertaining week, and a good way to inject some variance into one of the slower stretches of the season. Here’s what you need to know to watch:
Dates: Thursday, April 27 – Sunday, April 30, 2017
TV Schedule: Thursday-Friday: 9 a.m. – 6:30 p.m. ET (Golf Channel); Saturday-Sunday: 1 – 2:30 p.m. ET (Golf Channel) and 3-6 p.m. ET (CBS)
Teams
Tyrrell Hatton and Jamie Donaldson
Trey Mullinax and Bobby Wyatt
Jason Day and Rickie Fowler
Jason Dufner and Patton Kizzire
Justin Rose and Henrik Stenson
Jordan Spieth and Ryan Palmer
Jimmy Walker and Sean O’Hair
Bubba Watson and JB Holmes
Billy Horschel and Matt Every
Russell Knox and Kevin Streelman
Hideki Matsuyama and Hideto Tanihara
Patrick Reed and Patrick Cantlay
David Lingmerth and Danny Lee
William McGirt and Robert Garrigus
Daniel Berger and Thomas Pieters
Steven Bowditch and Boo Weekley
Keegan Bradley and Brendan Steele
Wesley Bryan and Ryan Blaum
Alex Cejka and Soren Kjeldsen
Tony Finau and Daniel Summerhays
Fabian Gomez and Jhonattan Vegas
Branden Grace and Louis Oosthuizen
Cody Gribble and Jim Herman
Russell Henley and Blayne Barber
JJ Henry and Tom Hoge
Charley Hoffman and Nick Watney
Mackenzie Hughes and Nick Taylor
Si Woo Kim and Sung Kang
Chris Kirk and Brendon Todd
Kevin Kisner and Scott Brown
Brooks Koepka and Chase Koepka
Peter Malnati and Mark Wilson
Ben Martin and Ben Crane
Troy Merritt and Robert Streb
Rod Pampling and John Senden
Steve Stricker and Jerry Kelly
Brian Stuard and Chris Stroud
Hudson Swafford and Harris English
Vaughn Taylor and Andres Gonzales
Justin Thomas and Bud Cauley
Geoff Ogilvy and Ian Poulter
Carl Pettersson and Jason Bohn
Kyle Ramey and Phil Schmitt
Seung-Yul Noh and Byeong Hun An
Kevin Chappell and Gary Woodland
Roberto Castro and Scott Stallings
Jamie Lovemark and Luke Donald
Brian Harman and Johnson Wagner
David Hearn and Graham DeLaet
Kyle Reifers and Andrew Johnston
Ricky Barnes and Matt Jones
Patrick Rodgers and Cameron Tringale
Chez Reavie and Lucas Glover
Freddie Jacobson and Willy Wilcox
K.J. Choi and Charlie Wi
Spencer Levin and Rocco Mediate
Tyrone Van Aswegen and Retief Goosen
Derek Fathauer and Sam Saunders
Jonas Blixt and Cameron Smith
Zac Blair and C.T. Pan
Andrew Loupe and John Peterson
Mark Hubbard and Jonathan Randolph
Kyle Stanley and Ryan Ruffels
Michael Kim and Brandon Hagy
Shawn Stefani and John Rollins
Ken Duke and Chad Collins
Steve Marino and Will MacKenzie
Morgan Hoffmann and Camilo Villegas
Grayson Murray and Cameron Percy
Kelly Kraft and Kevin Tway
Ollie Schniederjans and Richy Werenski
J.J. Spaun and Ryan Brehm
Dominic Bozzelli and J.T. Poston
Michael Thompson and Tim Wilkinson
Whee Kim and Greg Owen
Bryson DeChambeau and Rory Sabbatini
Martin Flores and Gonzalo Fdez-Castano
Seamus Power and Steven Alker
