Rory McIlroy and Bryson DeChambeau are two of the biggest stars in the game.
McIlroy is unquestionably the most successful golfer over the past 15 years, while DeChambeau has won two US Open titles and has created an army of new fans via his YouTube content creation.
However, both players share a serious rivalry, and it is far from an amicable one.
The animosity between Rory McIlroy and Bryson DeChambeau began back in 2025 at The Masters when they were paired together during the final round.
DeChambeau was put out that McIlroy did not speak to him during the final round.
Then in 2026, McIlroy criticized DeChambeau for his nonchalant approach to deciding who was furthest from the pin on the 9th green during the final round of The Masters the year before.
All of this ill-feeling between the two players really began when DeChambeau joined LIV Golf in 2022 and McIlroy quickly became one of the Saudi-backed league’s most outspoken critics.
The truth of the matter is that the two players have never really seen eye-to-eye.
However, the verbal sparring between the pair has been fairly quiet over the past few months.
Every major could make box-office Bryson DeChambeau and Rory McIlroy decisions
McIlroy then reignited his feud with DeChambeau at The Open last week, when he responded to the American’s rules violation at Royal Birkdale.
The Northern Irishman said he’s not fond of the LIV Golf star and labelled him as ‘performative’.
Now all the major championships have a golden opportunity to create previously unseen levels of excitement in 2027.
If any major championship wants to attract even more viewers to their tournament, it’s obvious what they should do – pair McIlroy and DeChambeau together for the first two rounds.
While the two players themselves surely wouldn’t be too happy with that, there isn’t a pairing that golf fans would want to see more.
However, pairing McIlroy and DeChambeau together might not be as straightforward as it seems.
The big issue here is that three of the major championships would almost certainly not be brave enough to take the plunge.
In fact, it’s not even a matter of them being brave enough. The Masters, The Open and The US Open all have their very own identities.
There is no need for them to take what some people would consider to be a gimmicky approach.
However, that is not the case for the PGA Championship.
The PGA of America has to try something different moving forward.
Their identity used to be that it was every golfer’s last shot at major glory.
However, since the PGA Championship has been moved back in the calendar to May, they have lost that.
PGA Championship has a chance to create a new identity
The PGA Championship is unquestionably golf’s least prestigious major championship.
However, the PGA of America could make the tournament at PGA Frisco in 2027 a truly blockbuster, must-see event, if they are brave enough.
They should be bold enough to pair Rory McIlroy and Bryson DeChambeau together.
Can you imagine the interest that pairing would generate? Every golf fan would want to tune in to watch the way they greet each other on the first tee, let alone the full round.
The PGA Championship has had to make do with being the poorer relative out of all four majors throughout the years.
However, the PGA of America now has a chance to make the tournament in 2027 a real stand-out event, for the first two rounds at least.
Their new identity could be one that involves setting up the most blockbuster pairings each and every year.
Pairing players together who are open about their disdain for one another could be the PGA Championship’s new avenue to achieve an identity that they have always craved.
Will they be brave enough to make it happen, though? Only time will tell.
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