The ever-popular Zurich Classic takes place this week, and new Grand Slam champion Rory McIlroy will be back in action.
The Northern Irishman elected to take a week off after finally winning The Masters at Augusta earlier this month.
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McIlroy completed the career Grand Slam, 11 years after his last Major winCredit: Getty
McIlroy became just the sixth player in history to complete the career Grand Slam, joining the exclusive list of all-time legends alongside Tiger Woods and Jack Nicklaus.
It was an incredible sporting moment to top off one of the greatest Masters in history.
It’s back to the PGA Tour for McIlroy this week, and he is set to join up with good friend Shane Lowry again.
The Zurich Classic is a team event and the Irish duo are the defending champions after claiming victory last year.
Zurich Classic 2025: Dates and how to follow
This event will get underway on Thursday, April 24 and run until Sunday, April 27.
It is being held at TPC Louisiana in New Orleans. The course is a par 72 and measures 7,442 yards in length.
The action will get underway at 1pm UK time.
talkSPORT 2 will have live commentary of the action in Avondale and you can listen here.
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The event will also be broadcast live on Sky Sports Golf.
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Lowry wanted Masters glory himself, but he was delighted for his good mateCredit: Getty
Upcoming golf events
May 4
- PGA Tour – CJ Cup Byron Nelson, TPC Craig Ranch, Texas
- LIV Golf – Korea, Jack Nicklaus Golf Course
May 11
- PGA Tour – Truist Championship, Philadelphia Cricket Club (Signature Event)
- PGA Tour – Myrtle Beach Classic, Dunes Golf and Beach Club
- DP World Tour – Turkish Open, Regnum Carya Golf & Spa Resort, Antalya
May 18
May 25
- PGA Tour – Charles Schwab Challenge, Colonial Country Club, Texas (Invitational)
- DP World Tour – Soudal Open, Rinkven International GC, Antwerp
June 1
- PGA Tour – Memorial, Muirfield Village Golf Club, Dublin (Signature Event)
- DP World Tour – Austrian Alpine Open, Gut Altentann GC, Salzburg
Zurich Classic 2025: Format, field and tee times
The Zurich Classic consists of 80 two-man teams.
The first round is played using the fourballs format, which means each player uses their own ball, and the best score on each hole from the pair contributes to the team total.
In the second round, the format switches to foursomes, which sees each pair use one ball, playing alternate shots.
As well as McIlroy and Lowry, there are some other interesting pairs.
Matt Fitzpatrick and brother Alex are involved, the Hojgaard twins – Rasmus and Nicolai – are forming a team, and French duo Matthieu Pavon and Victor Perez are together.
Collin Morikawa is joined by Kurt Kitayama, Billy Horschel is linking up with Tom Hoge and Canada’s Adam Hadwin and Nick Taylor are alongside each other.
England’s Aaron Rai and American star Sahith Theegala, who are both of Indian descent, have teamed up too.
The winners claim a place at the PGA Championship, and those that make the cut are eligible for prize money and FedExCup points.
Those in the winning pair claim 400 points and a record $1,329,400 each.
The full field, pairings and tee times have been confirmed and can be found here.
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McIlroy and Lowry are the defending championsCredit: GettyZurich Classic 2025: What has been said?
McIlroy has been struggling with a bug picked up following his Masters win and while it has limited his ability to practise, he is now ready to tackle TPC Louisiana again.
“As you can hear, I’ve picked up a bit of a cold on the way, so feeling a little bit under the weather,” he said.
“Today (Wednesday) is a pretty important day for me. I need to start hitting some balls again and getting back into it.
“When I woke up Monday morning, I could barely get out of bed I was feeling that bad. Just to be here and feeling better is an achievement.
“But I need to put a little bit of practice in to make sure that I don’t let this man (Lowry) down this week.
“It’s been an amazing few days but I’m excited and I’m happy to be here with my man and we’re looking forward to a great week and trying to defend.
“If you had asked me a year ago if I’d be sitting here in this position with everything that’s happened…
“I honestly could not be in a better place in my life…professionally, personally – all of it. It’s amazing what a year can do.
“This tournament last year was a really cool moment for both of us. It injected a little bit of joy back into golf for me in some way. It’s really, really important not to lose that.”
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