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BURNS WINS MATCH PLAY

Sam Burns dominates final WGC-Match Play, denies Cameron Young first PGA Tour victory

Tom Pennington

Sam Burns finally had enough. No more comebacks. No more close calls. He was done with all the stress of the result being in question until the bitter end.

After a bogey on the second hole Sunday during the championship match of the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play, the 26-year-old from Louisiana unleashed seven birdies in a nine-hole stretch to build a massive lead over Cameron Young and win 6 and 5, capturing his fifth PGA Tour title in the last two years. Young collected his sixth runner-up finish on tour but is left searching for his first victory.

Burns played 119 holes in the last five days at Austin Country Club and completed a perfect 7-0 record. He takes home the $3.5 million top prize.

“What a week,” Burns said. “I’m so tired.”

While Burns’ record was flawless he had to work extremely hard over the past two days, in the last four matches since he went 3-0 in the group stage. In the Round of 16 he was down to Patrick Cantlay after nine holes, he was down early in the quarterfinals against Mackenzie Hughes and, although he was up early in the semifinal against his good friend Scottie Scheffler, he was 2 down after 12 holes to the No. 1 player in the world and had to go 21 holes before collecting that victory. Burns birdied the 18th in that match to send it into extra holes, leaving Scheffler to play Rory McIlroy in the consolation match.

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The birdie train for World No. 15 Burns got started on the fourth hole when he and Young both tied the hole. He got up and down for birdie from short, left of the green on No. 5, got up and down from 45 yards on the par-5 sixth for birdie and when Young made bogey on the seventh hole, Burns was quickly 3 up. Burns then birdied Nos. 10-13, and with the help of Young hitting it in the water on both the 12th and 13th holes, the match was quickly over.

“I kind of found something at the end of my match this morning with Scottie and was able to carry it on this afternoon,” Burns said.

Burns first PGA Tour victory came in May 2021 at the Valspar Championship and he followed it up later that year with another at the Sanderson Farms Championship, where, coincidentally, he defeated Young by a shot. Burns defended his 2021 Valspar title by winning again in 2022 and he defeated Scheffler in a playoff last May to win the Charles Schwab Challenge at Colonial.

RELATED: Here's the prize money payout for every player at the WGC-Dell Match Play

For Young, 25, his first victory seems to be getting closer and closer. Now World No. 17, he won twice on the Korn Ferry Tour in 2021 and his first time in contention on the PGA Tour came in the aforementioned Sanderson Farms event against Burns. He shot a final-round 65 last summer at the Open Championship at the Old Course to finish second to Cam Smith by a shot.

This week at the Match Play, the 2022 PGA Tour Rookie of the Year overpowered match-play maestro Billy Horschel in the Round of 16, outlasted Kurt Kitayama in the quarterfinals and birdied two of the last three holes in the semifinal against Rory McIlroy to push the match into a playoff, where he’d win with birdie. While he took home $2.2 million for the runner-up finish, he finally ran out of steam late Sunday in the championship match and had little firepower to combat Burns.

“All I can take aways is that I played really well,” Young said. “I’ve got nothing bad to say about my week.”

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Wgc-dell technologies match play live updates: it's cam young vs. sam burns in the final, share this article.

AUSTIN, Texas — It’s not only the last day of action for the 2023 edition of the World Golf Championships-Dell Technologies Match Play, but it’s also the last running of the tournament at Austin Country Clu b and could very well be the last WGC event ever staged.

The course is in perfect shape, with ACC head pro Dale Morgan telling Golfweek it’s probably the best it’s been during the seven-year run at the Pete Dye-designed track.

The event’s spot on the 2024 schedule, which is typically in late March on the back end of the Florida Swing, is expected to be filled by the Cadence Bank Houston Open, unless it prefers a date in the late April/early May timeframe instead as part of a shuffling of events.

The semifinals certainly weren’t lacking star power this year as Rory McIlroy met Cameron Young and reigning champ Scottie Scheffler squared off with his friend Sam Burns.

Here’s a look at how the final day has played out (with most recent updates at the top).

Sam Burns takes 3-up lead to the turn, has used hot putter throughout the week

It’s been a strong day for Burns, who has answered the call repeatedly against both Scheffler and now Young. He has used a hot putter throughout the week to get in prime position for a fifth PGA Tour victory.

But Burns has also failed to hit the fairway consistently at ACC. He hit just 48 of the first 91 fairways he played, despite going undefeated through his first six matches.

In terms of the big news that the USGA and R&A will be rolling back ball distance in the future, Burns previously said he’s not a fan.

“Personally, I think it’s pretty silly. I would say if you look at the last few years of golf, I think the game has grown tremendously,” Burns said. “At the end of the day no matter what it is we’re an entertainment sport and I think, I don’t think people necessarily want to come out here and watch guys hit it shorter. They enjoy watching guys go out there and hit it 350 yards. I don’t see what the problem is with that. I think that’s a skill and I don’t really agree with trying to take that away.”

Sam Burns goes 3-up over Cameron Young with a 20-foot birdie make on the 8th. 👏 📺: @nbc and @peacock pic.twitter.com/HC2Fx4aBbC — Golf Channel (@GolfChannel) March 26, 2023

Young-Tesori combination paying instant dividends

Young is playing his first event with accomplished caddie Paul Tesori, who had been on the bag of Webb Simpson for a dozen years before a recent split. Tesori, a former player, carried Simpson’s bag for all seven of his PGA Tour wins, and had previously worked with Jerry Kelly and then-No. 1 Vijay Singh.

If the early returns are any indication, Tesori is steering Young down a familiar path.

Young took the lead on the second hole in the final, but fell behind when Burns took the fifth and sixth holes. and then dropped to 2 down when he missed an 8-foot putt for par. Still, he’s been fighting all week with Tesori’s guidance.

It’s an interesting contrast in styles as Tesori is full of energy and Young has been known for a laid-back approach.

“I’ve obviously been around him a lot,” Young said. “Webb and I played a practice round together 22 times this past year, so I’ve been around him a ton, so it’s really comfortable. I think he just brings a ton of energy, which is good for me. I’m kind of pretty flat-lined. But it’s been great so far.”

Cameron Young and caddie Paul Tesori share a laugh during the second round of the World Golf Championships-Dell Technologies Match Play golf tournament. (Dustin Safranek/USA TODAY Sports)

Rory McIlroy, Scottie Scheffler both drive it to back of green on 350-yard hole

McIlroy put on a show with his driver during the week at Austin Country Club and did so again on the fifth hole of the consolation match, as he wound up and uncorked a 375-yard drive which rolled through the green and came to rest on an upper ridge of the putting surface.

Not to be outdone, Scheffler ripped his drive 364 yards, also getting up on the back third of the green.

Scheffler, however, posted his second three-putt of the day and fell 3 down through five holes.

For McIlroy, the drive was his 16th drive of 350 yards or more for the week.

Could 17 be the deciding hole? It was an afterthought

Don’t be surprised if No. 17 winds up deciding the championship match between Young and Burns, especially with how well the two have been playing all week. Interesting story about No. 17: It wasn’t on the original sketches from architect Pete Dye. 

He originally sketched out the routing on a napkin, putting together much of the track as it currently exists. He proudly passed the drawings along and was a little miffed when someone noted that he had not routed enough holes in the plan.

Tom Kite told us more about the story this week.

Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland looks for his ball in the ravine beyond the rocks on the 17th hole during the third round of the World Golf Championships-Dell Technologies Match Play at Austin Country Club on March 26, 2021, in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Keyur Khamar/PGA TOUR via Getty Images)

Final matches set to go off, but will Rory-Scottie get more airtime than the final?

Typically, the consolation match at the Dell Match Play gets a sizable amount of airtime on the NBC broadcast, as producers try to fill the gaps between finalists’ shots.

But today’s consolation match between McIlroy and Scheffler is sure to get center stage, perhaps an equal amount of time and attention to the final between Burns and Young.

In the previous six years here at ACC, the best consolation match — in terms of seeds — was in 2019 when 13th seed Alex Noran squared off with second-seeded Justin Thomas. Conversely, the lowest seeds that met for the consolation came in 2017 (when Dustin Johnson beat Jon Rahm in the final),  as Hideto Tanihara (54) squared off with Bill Haas (42).

Watch: Burns drops 15-footer, ousts reigning champ Scheffler

So much for Scottie Scheffler closing out the last two Dell Match Play tournaments with consecutive titles. Like he did a year ago at the Charles Schwab Challenge, Burns dropped a big putt to beat his friend Scheffler in extra holes, this time on the 21st hole of the day for the duo.

It will be Burns vs. Young for the title, perhaps not the final that NBC Sports was hoping for, but an absolutely thrilling way for the two semifinals to conclude, the first time both final four matches went to extra holes.

. @SamBurns66 for the win 😤 After 21 holes, Burns defeats Scheffler and will face Cameron Young in the championship @DellMatchPlay . pic.twitter.com/AWZIDIoj49 — PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 26, 2023

Young buries putt on first extra hole, knocks out McIlroy

Down two with four holes to play, few thought Young had much of a chance against McIlroy, but the No. 17 player in the world rallied to win the 16th and 18th hole and then top McIlroy in the first extra hole.

“It’s just further proof that I feel like I can hang with anybody in the world. Rory’s obviously one of the best of his generation, if not the best, and one of the best players in the world right now. So anytime you get to go out and play 19 holes with him it’s a lot of fun. Just thankful to get it done,” Young said.

“It was a lot of fun. It’s never fun being down to someone like that with a few holes to go. Paul said to me on 15, he said, If you birdie the last three after we didn’t birdie 15, if you birdie the last three, we might get to play another one. And fortunately, just two was enough to just push it to extra holes and that was obviously a really nice birdie there after a bad break.”

Cameron Young chips at the third hole in a match against Rory McIlroy during the final day of the World Golf Championships-Dell Technologies Match Play golf tournament. Mandatory Credit: Dustin Safranek-USA TODAY Sports

McIlroy can't replicate magic on 18 against Young, match is all square

On Thursday, during his match against Denny McCarthy in the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play at Austin Country Club, McIlroy hit one of the best drives of all time.

But looking to close out Cameron Young during the semifinals on Sunday, McIlroy couldn’t repeat that magic, pushing his drive to the right. The ball rolled through a bunker and into a rough lie just off the green.

McIlroy made four, but Young dropped his birdie putt and forced extra play.

On Thursday, McIlroy and McCarthy’s match reached the 18th hole with the Northern Irishman 1 up. He had the first shot, and his smashed his driver with 188 mph ball speed. It finally landed 349 yards away on the front of the green. It ended 3 feet, 9 inches from the hole. Here’s another look at Thursday’s drive from McIlroy.

One of the greatest drives you will EVER see 🤯 @McIlroyRory drives the ball to 3 FEET at the 375-yard par-4 18th with a 349-yard carry to the green! pic.twitter.com/HzhMBtyKkr — PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 23, 2023

Scheffler birdies 18th hole, extends match with Burns

What else would you expect? After Sam Burns nearly holed out on his chip at the short 18th hole, he then missed an 11-footer that would have closed out the reigning champ.

Scheffler stepped up and buried a putt from just inside five feet to get this match square yet again.

The two will head back to No. 12 to keep this fun going.

Watch: Burns surges ahead with incredible shot on 17

At a time when he needed it most, Burns dropped in perhaps his best shot of the tournament, hitting a gap wedge on the 17th to one foot.

Scheffler conceded the birdie and just missed a birdie putt of his own, meaning Burns took the lead for the first time in 11 holes.

What a shot from @SamBurns66 🔥 He’s now 1-up with one to play @DellMatchPlay . pic.twitter.com/WJ1rvHpQOQ — PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 26, 2023

Scheffler in a battle with buddy Burns

Scottie Scheffler and Sam Burns are in a dogfight in one semifinal as Scheffler got 3 down in the first three holes, clawed back to take the lead, but then watched Burns come back to even things on the 15th hole.

The last time Sam Burns won a PGA Tour event was at the 2022 Charles Schwab Challenge at Colonial Country Club, when he buried a 38-foot putt from off the green to edge his friend and claim the title . The two play a lot of golf, have recently been pickleball teammates, and even sometimes stay together on the road, they’ll both be ready to come out firing on Sunday morning.

“We want to beat each other as bad as anybody, if not more,” Burns said of his relationship with Scheffler. “Obviously, when we tee it up, it’ll be business, and after we’ll give a hug to each other and congratulate whoever wins.”

Clutch birdie from @SamBurns66 💪 His match against Scheffler is now tied with 3 to play @DellMatchPlay . pic.twitter.com/8pFA2vOkQ5 — PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 26, 2023

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WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play to end after this season, tournament exec confirms

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This year's run in Austin will be the final year of the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play.

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The final World Golf Championship event left on the PGA Tour schedule is coming to an end.

WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play executive director Jordan Uppleger confirmed at the event’s media day Monday that the tournament won’t be coming back next year.

“We’re formally announcing today that the 2023 World Golf Championship Dell Technologies Match Play will be the final playing of the event here at Austin Country Club, and not be included on the 2024 calendar or moving forward,” Uppleger said, according to Golfweek. “The event has had an incredible run here at Austin Country Club.”

The announcement confirms a February report from Golfweek about the event’s future.

Tour Confidential: Designated events 2.0, epic Bay Hill battle, Tiger-less Players

The WGC-Match Play has been the only regular match-play event on the PGA Tour since its creation back in 1999. Since last season, it was also the only remaining WGC event on the PGA Tour’s schedule. The WGC-HSBC Champions was slated to be played for the first time since 2019 last October before being canceled in July due to COVID-19-related restrictions in China.

The WGCs were created in 1999 by the International Federation of PGA Tours as official money events on both the PGA and European (now DP World) Tours. The events were also sanctioned by the Asian Tour, Japan Golf Tour, Sunshine Tour, and PGA Tour of Australasia.

The WGC-Championship was last played in 2021 as the WGC-Workday Championship while the WGC-Invitational morphed into the first FedEx Cup Playoff event starting in 2022. Meanwhile, the WGC-Match Play was given Designated status for 2023 when the PGA Tour first announced the new $20 million mega events last summer.

The tournament has been played at Austin Country Club since 2016 after landing Austin-area-based Dell as the title sponsor. Previously it was played in Arizona, California and for one year in Australia.

Dell’s sponsorship was renewed in 2019 to extend through this season with Austin Country Club remaining as the host.

Won and 1! Scottie Scheffler wins Match Play and moves to World No. 1 

“I was told you had to have three main components to have a successful event, you had to have an active title sponsor, an engaging country club and a supporting community and client base,” Uppleger said. “And there is no doubt that this event has exceeded all of those expectations as we’ve been here since 2016.”

The tournament’s slot on the calendar is expected to be filled by the Cadence Bank Houston Open as it moves from the fall portion of the schedule. Uppleger also said the PGA Tour is still looking at Austin to host a future event.

The 2024 schedule, with significant changes as the PGA Tour moves forward with its “Designated Events Model” is expected to be unveiled this week at the Players Championship.

This year’s WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play is set for March 22-26 with Scottie Scheffler defending .

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Jack Hirsh is an assistant editor at GOLF. A Pennsylvania native, Jack is a 2020 graduate of Penn State University, earning degrees in broadcast journalism and political science. He was captain of his high school golf team and recently returned to the program to serve as head coach. Jack also still *tries* to remain competitive in local amateurs. Before joining GOLF, Jack spent two years working at a TV station in Bend, Oregon, primarily as a Multimedia Journalist/reporter, but also producing, anchoring and even presenting the weather. He can be reached at [email protected] .

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WGC Match Play: Sam Burns rolls past Cam Young after semifinal battle to grab 5th career win

It took a long semifinal rally over the top-ranked player in the world to get there, but Sam Burns officially claimed his fifth career PGA Tour win on Sunday afternoon in Austin.

Burns surged ahead in the back half of his championship match with Cameron Young to win the final playing of the World Golf Championships-Dell Technologies Match Play at Austin Country Club. Burns won 6-and-5.

5 wins in 46 starts 💪 @SamBurns66 wins @DellMatchPlay and claims his fifth victory on TOUR. pic.twitter.com/xBW1sXq3lG — PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 26, 2023

Young got the jump early, and took a 1-up lead after a birdie at the second. Burns, however, closed out his front nine with four birdies in his final six holes to flip the match and suddenly take a three-hole lead. He was seen snacking on an "Uncrustables" early during that stretch, too, which seemed to only help his birdie run.

Unbeatable since the Uncrustable. First 6 holes? 1-up. 🥪 Next 7 holes? 5-up. https://t.co/y7Y3lme7Qk pic.twitter.com/jTxEpwBrUB — PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 26, 2023

Burns then opened the back nine with three straight birdies, which pushed his lead to five with just six holes remaining.

Then for good measure, Burns nearly drove the short par-4 13th and would have tapped in for birdie to seal the win, but Young conceded. He made eight birdies in his final 10 holes of the day.

“I’m so tired. That was fun playing Cam today,” Burns said on NBC. “I know he didn’t have his best stuff, but it was a great match … I felt like I kind of found something in my match this morning with Scottie, and I was able to carry that into the afternoon.”

A champion once again 👏 @SamBurns66 wins @DellMatchPlay 6&5 over Cameron Young. pic.twitter.com/9m72zcN0EO — PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 26, 2023

Burns has now won five times on the PGA Tour. He won three times last season, most recently at the Sanderson Farms Championship, and has a pair of top-10 finishes already this season. He finished alone in sixth last week at the Valspar Championship .

Young is still searching for his first career win after what has been a painful collection of runner-up finishes for the 25-year-old. Young finished in second five times last season, including at the British Open, and finished T3 at the PGA Championship.

Both Burns and Young needed extra holes in their semifinal matches to get past Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy, respectively, which marked the first time that’s happened in tournament history.

Burns had to rally late to get past Scheffler. After falling 2-down through 12 holes, Burns climbed back suddenly to 1-up by the time they got to the 18th. It wasn’t until the 21st hole that Burns finally sank a nearly 15-foot birdie putt to seal the win.

. @SamBurns66 for the win 😤 After 21 holes, Burns defeats Scheffler and will face Cameron Young in the championship @DellMatchPlay . pic.twitter.com/AWZIDIoj49 — PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 26, 2023

Scheffler had a chance to end it on the second extra hole, but he missed a 4-footer.

“I struggled midway through the round, but just was able to battle back and kept myself in it and you know, at the end of the day, it came down to making putts,” Burns said after his semifinal match.

Young was down two holes with just three to play in his semifinal match with McIlroy, too, but he birdied two of the final three to force extra holes — thanks to errant drives from McIlroy on the 16th and 18th. Young then sank a birdie putt on their first extra hole to end the match.

“I just didn’t do enough over those last four holes to close him out and when you don’t do that and you’re up against a player of Cam’s caliber, that’s what’s going to happen,” McIlroy said.

McIlroy then beat Scheffler 2-and-1 in their consolation match to take third.

The WGC-Match Play is ending after this season. The tournament did not make the cut in the tour’s revamped schedule for 2024, meaning Burns will be the final winner. The tournament has been the only regular match-play event on tour over the past several decades. It is also the last standing World Golf Championships event left on the calendar as the WGC events are also likely going to dissolve.

Since Scheffler was knocked out before he could defend last year’s win in Austin, assuming the series isn't revived, Tiger Woods is the only player who successfully defended a WGC title in the history of the events. Woods did so eight different times.

Scheffler beats Kim in playoff to win PGA Tour's Travelers

Scottie Scheffler takes down Tom Kim at the Travelers Championship in a playoff to win his sixth tournament of 2024. (1:05)

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CROMWELL, Conn. -- Scottie Scheffler had to wait out a climate protest on the 18th green and Tom Kim 's tying birdie on the last hole of regulation.

Those events only delayed what seems to be inevitable on the PGA Tour this season: the best golfer in the world walking off with the trophy.

Shrugging off a protest that interrupted the tournament on the 72nd hole while the leaders were lining up their putts, Scheffler won the Travelers Championship on the first hole of sudden death Sunday for his sixth win of the year, the most in one season on the PGA Tour since Tiger Woods had six in 2009 and the most before July since Arnold Palmer won six (two each in February, April and May) in 1962.

"When something like that happens, you don't really know what's happening, so it can kind of rattle you a little bit," Scheffler said of the protest.

"That can be a stressful situation, and you would hate for the tournament to end on something weird happening because of a situation like that," he said. "Tom and I both tried to calm each other down so we could give it our best shot there on 18."

Scheffler closed with a 5-under 65 and a 22-under 258 total at the TPC River Highlands, and Kim matched him with a final-round 66.

Tom Hoge and Sungjae Im tied for third, 2 shots back, with Patrick Cantlay , Tony Finau , Justin Thomas and Akshay Bhatia tied for fifth at 18 under. Bhatia was also in the final group that was disrupted by the protest.

It was Scheffler's fourth victory of the year in the tour's $20 million, limited-field signature events, earning him a payday of $3.6 million. He also won the Masters and the Players Championship.

And Scheffler still has two months to go.

"As much as I love him, I would have loved to take that away from him," said Kim, who shares a birthday and a friendship with Scheffler. "But I'm happy for him, and after I tapped out, after he tapped out, he said some really nice words and it meant a lot to me."

Scheffler had a 1-stroke lead heading to the 18th green on Sunday when six people stormed the course , waving smoke bombs that left a red and white powdery residue on the putting surface. Some wore white T-shirts with the words "NO GOLF ON A DEAD PLANET" in black lettering.

After a delay of about five minutes, when tournament officials used towels and blowers to remove the powder and any other marks that might affect play, Scheffler left a 26-foot putt from the fringe on the edge of the cup and tapped in for par.

Kim then made a 10-foot birdie putt for a 66 to match Scheffler.

"Obviously it is a disruption and you don't want it to happen, but for me it just kind of slowed things down," Kim said. "It took the meaning of the putt away for a second. Because for the past 17½ holes all you're thinking about is golf, and suddenly when that happens your mind goes into a complete -- like, you're almost not even playing golf anymore. I thought it was a dream for a second."

The hole location on the 18th was moved for the playoff to avoid the parts of the green affected by the protesters.

Scheffler hit his approach in the playoff to 11 feet while Kim found a greenside bunker. Kim's blast from a plugged lie ran 36 feet past the hole, leaving Scheffler with an easy two-putt par for the victory. Afterward, his wife, Meredith, met him on the green, carrying their 6-week-old son, Bennett.

"It's fun competing against your friends," Scheffler said. "But at the same time, it's difficult. Because part of me wants him to miss the putt and part of me wants him to make the putt. ... But he should remember that putt he made on 18, because it was pretty special. And he's a great player and a great champion."

Coming off a tie for 41st in the U.S. Open -- by far his worst finish of the year -- Scheffler trailed Kim by 3 strokes after the first round, by 2 after the second and by 1 heading to the tee Sunday.

Scheffler took a 1-shot lead over Kim with three straight birdies on Nos. 13-15 -- he had putts for eagle on two of them. While Hoge signed for a 62 to finish at 20 under, and Im joined him there, Scheffler and Kim matched pars over the next two holes to set up the surprising finish.

Scheffler and Kim share a June 21 birthday -- Scheffler is 6 years older -- and they celebrated with renowned New Haven pizza before the tournament. The Dallas-area residents played together in the final group Sunday, chatting and joking around.

But only one of them could hold the trophy at the end.

And just like it has been so often, it was Scheffler, who became the first player to have his birthday during a tour event and go on to win since Xander Schauffele at the 2018 WGC-HSBC Champions.

Kim said being in a pack of leaders with his birthday buddy allowed him to focus on his own game.

"You don't need to worry about him, because he's going to play well," Kim said. "Obviously he's a phenomenal player, world No. 1, all those titles. But at the same time for me he's just Scottie Scheffler, he's just a good friend.

"To come down with someone that I play a lot of golf with, who beats me a lot at home -- and, unfortunately, he beat me in the playoff too. But it definitely made it a lot more enjoyable out there."

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.

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2023 WGC-Dell Match Play: Bracket, predictions, picks, odds, format, field rankings, golf bets

The pga tour will look different this week as the top 64 players compete in the match play event.

The PGA Tour heads to the Lone Star State for what may very well be the final World Golf Championship at the 2023 WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play. The lone event on the calendar to feature the match-play format, the WGC Match Play will welcome 64 of the best players in the world to Austin Country Club.

Last season, world No. 1 and defending champion Scottie Scheffler was featured in the all-English pool of Matt Fitzpatrick, Ian Poulter and Tommy Fleetwood. Scheffler went 2-1-0 in pool play, losing to Fleetwood, and had to defeat Fitzpatrick in a playoff in order to advance. This proved to be a domino effect as Scheffler went on to claim victory over Kevin Kisner in the championship, avenging his 2021 runner-up performance and climbing to world No. 1 for the first time in his career.

He arrives to his alma mater's backyard atop the golf world again, and will be up against Tom Kim, Alex Noren and Davis Riley in pool play. World No. 2 Jon Rahm occupies the other side of the bracket in the group of death, and will need to go through Billy Horschel, Keith Mitchell and Rickie Fowler in his first appearance since withdrawing from the Players Championship with illness.

Rory McIlroy is the No. 3 overall seed and will need to get something going with the 2023 Masters on the horizon. He will be tasked with defeating Keegan Bradley, Denny McCarthy and Scott Stallings. A potential date with Rahm in the semifinals could be in store if both players act accordingly.

Patrick Cantlay, Max Homa, Tony Finau, Tyrrell Hatton and Xander Schauffele should have relatively easy strolls to the Round of 16 on paper. Yet as we have seen before, unknown commodities such as Victor Perez, Victor Dubuisson and Corey Conners have made runs in the past proving anything is possible in this format.

Event information

Event:  2023 WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play |  Dates:  Mar. 22-26 Location:  Austin Country Club -- Austin, TX Par:  71 |  Yardage:  7,108 |  Purse:  $20,000,000

Unlike the early stages of the event, where a single-elimination style was solely utilized, players are guaranteed three matches in pool play. Each pool consists of an "A" player (ranked 1-16), "B" player (ranked 17-32), "C" player (ranked 33-48) and a "D" player (ranked 49-64). The player with the most points (i.e., the best record) by the end of the three matches will advance to the Round of 16 where single elimination will begin until there is only one golfer left standing.

Group scoring:  1 point for a win, 0.5 points for a tie and 0 points for a loss. Whichever player in each pod has the most points at the end of three matches advances. If there is a tie, or if multiple players are tied, there will be a sudden-death playoff on Friday. 

Here's a look at all 16 groups going into Wednesday's action (the top 16 seeds were determined by Official World Golf Ranking).

• Group 1: Scottie Scheffler, Tom Kim, Alex Noren, Davis Riley
• Group 2: Jon Rahm, Billy Horschel, Keith Mitchell, Rickie Fowler
• Group 3: Rory McIlroy, Keegan Bradley, Denny McCarthy, Scott Stallings
• Group 4: Patrick Cantlay, Brian Harman, K.H. Lee, Nick Taylor
• Group 5: Max Homa, Hideki Matsuyama, Kevin Kisner, Justin Suh
• Group 6: Xander Schauffele, Tom Hoge, Aaron Wise, Cam Davis
• Group 7: Will Zalatoris, Ryan Fox, Harris English, Andrew Putnam
• Group 8: Viktor Hovland, Chris Kirk, Si Woo Kim, Matt Kuchar
• Group 9: Collin Morikawa, Jason Day, Adam Svensson, Victor Perez
• Group 10: Tony Finau, Kurt Kitayama, Adrian Meronk, Christiaan Bezuidenhout
• Group 11: Matt Fitzpatrick, Sahith Theegala, Min Woo Lee, J.J. Spaun
• Group 12: Jordan Spieth, Shane Lowry, Taylor Montgomery, Mackenzie Hughes
• Group 13: Sam Burns, Seamus Power, Adam Scott, Adam Hadwin
• Group 14: Tyrrell Hatton, Russell Henley, Lucas Herbert, Ben Griffin
• Group 15: Cameron Young, Sepp Straka, Corey Conners, Davis Thompson
• Group 16: Sungjae Im, Tommy Fleetwood, J.T. Poston, Maverick McNealy

Here is a look at the  complete bracket for the 2023 WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play.

2023 WGC-Dell Match Play field, odds

Odds via Caesars Sportsbook

• Scottie Scheffler (8-1): It was here a season ago where Scheffler ascended to world No. 1 for the first time in his career. He arrives a year later in arguably the same, if not better, form with wins at the WM Phoenix Open and Players Championship. In two trips to Austin CC, Scheffler has garnered a record of 10-2-2 while claiming the runner-up prize in 2021 and the grand prize in 2022. He has drawn one of the more difficult pools with Kim, Noren and Riley, and if the putter remains somewhat cold, there is a path, albeit a tight one, for the world No. 1 to be upended early.
• Jon Rahm (11-1): The big Spaniard always seems to threaten in Austin. Putting together a career record of 12-7-3 on the Pete Dye design, Rahm has made his way out of the group stage each of the last two years, including last season when he bowed out in the Round of 16 after losing to Brooks Koepka in 19 holes. Rahm will give himself plenty of birdie looks over the span of a match, and is putting his golf ball as well as ever. His initial group of Horschel, Mitchell and Fowler is a dreadful draw, but I like his path to the finals if he makes his way out.
• Rory McIlroy (12-1)
• Patrick Cantlay (16-1)
• Max Homa (20-1)
• Xander Schauffele (22-1): He may have one of the easier pools with Cam Davis, Tom Hoge and Aaron Wise. Schauffele has a record of 5-4-3 at Austin CC but has yet to advance to the Round of 16. Davis and Hoge flashed form at TPC Sawgrass -- namely Hoge with his record-setting 62 -- but Schauffele is without a flaw in his game and has a clear path to the quarterfinals where McIlroy may be waiting.
• Viktor Hovland (22-1)
• Tony Finau (22-1)
• Jordan Spieth (22-1)
• Collin Morikawa (22-1): The vagaries of match play will be apparent for Morikawa. How often will a playing competitor give him a putt inside 3 feet? Potentially never. He led the field in strokes gained approach at the Players Championship but was let down by his putter over the final 54 holes. Morikawa's approach play will consistently apply pressure on his playing competitors, but the tables will turn once they arrive to the green. He is 2-2-3 in two trips to Austin.
• Tyrrell Hatton (28-1)
• Cameron Young (28-1)

2023 WGC-Dell Match Play expert picks

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