Shane Lowry and Brooks Koepka are set to join forces for this week’s Zurich Classic of New Orleans, a distinctive team competition held at TPC Louisiana. Their partnership adds another intriguing storyline to a field that already includes 80 duos battling for the trophy. The defending champions, Ben Griffin and Andrew Novak, will be back after edging out the Danish brothers Nicolai and Rasmus Højgaard by a single stroke in the 2025 edition. The Zurich Classic has become a showcase for some of golf’s most popular pairings.
In recent years, Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry have teamed up, capturing the 2024 title after a dramatic playoff victory over Martin Trainer and Chad Ramey. Their win was celebrated in true show‑business style when the duo performed a rousing rendition of Journey’s "Don’t Stop Believin’" on stage, sending fans into a frenzy.
McIlroy explained to GOLF.com that the partnership was born during a "drunken lunch" after Team Europe’s triumph in Rome in 2023, saying, "I asked him [to play]. We had this really drunken lunch after the Ryder Cup last year. I said after, ‘You wanna play the Zurich together?’ And we were like, ‘yeah, let’s do it.’" Now, while McIlroy enjoys a brief hiatus from tournament play after back‑to‑back Green Jackets at the Masters, Lowry is pairing with five‑time major champion Brooks Koepka.
Koepka returned to the PGA Tour in January after a four‑year stint with LIV Golf, and his reunion with the Tour coincides with Lowry’s quest for another team title. The two live near each other in Florida and have faced one another on opposite sides of the Ryder Cup in the past, yet they remain close friends, making their collaboration both competitive and collegial. Both players bring a wealth of major‑championship experience. Lowry captured The Open Championship in 2019 at the historic Royal Portrush course and has been a member of two victorious Ryder Cup teams.
Koepka’s résumé includes five major victories—two U.S. Opens and three PGA Championships—making him one of the most decorated players of his generation. Together, they account for six major titles and a deep familiarity with high‑pressure situations, positioning them as early favorites in a field that is anything but easy. Among the other contenders, Matt Fitzpatrick will return to the competition alongside his younger brother Alex Fitzpatrick.
Matt, fresh from his second PGA Tour win of the season, recently climbed to No. 3 in the Official World Golf Rankings after triumphs at the Valspar Championship and the RBC Heritage, where he defeated world No.
1 Scottie Scheffler in a playoff. Alex has also been in fine form, securing his first DP World Tour victory at the Hero Indian Open in March.
The Fitzpatrick brothers missed the cut by two strokes in the previous year’s Zurich Classic, so they will be eager to improve their performance. Rookie Marco Penge, a long‑driver from England, will make his PGA Tour debut at the event with fellow Englishman Matt Wallace.
Penge’s best finish on the Tour to date is a tied‑fourth at the Valspar Championship, and his powerful swing could be a valuable asset in the team formats. Aaron Rai will also compete, paired with Sahith Theegala, who has already posted four top‑10 finishes this season on the PGA Tour. The Zurich Classic is unique on the PGA Tour calendar as the sole team‑based tournament.
The competition uses a hybrid format: the first and third rounds are played as four‑ball, where each player hits his own ball and the lower score on each hole counts for the team. The second and final rounds shift to foursomes, also known as alternate‑shot, where the partners share a single ball and take turns hitting shots, including alternating tee shots on each hole. After 36 holes, the top 33 teams and any ties advance to the weekend rounds.
In 2025, the cut line was set at ten strokes under par, and several high‑profile players, including Collin Morikawa and Kurt Kitayama, missed the cut. If the teams are tied after the final round, a sudden‑death playoff determines the champion.
The stakes are high: the prize pool has been increased from $9.2 million to $9.5 million, and the winning duo will split roughly 14.45 percent of that amount—about $1.372 million each. In addition to the financial reward, each winner receives 400 FedExCup points, though no Official World Golf Ranking points are awarded for this event. The victorious pair also earns exemptions into marquee tournaments for the 2027 season, including The Players Championship and The PGA Championship, and they secure an automatic invitation to the Zurich Classic for the next two years. Broadcast coverage will be extensive.
Sky Sports will air live action from all four days, beginning with early‑round coverage at 1 p.m. on Sky Sports Golf and moving to full coverage at 8 p.m. on Thursday. Friday’s second round starts at 1.45 p.m., with full coverage again at 8 p.m.
Weekend play will be shown from 2 p.m. with full coverage at 6 p.m. on both Saturday and Sunday. The tournament runs alongside the first women’s major of the year, the Chevron Classic, which will be broadcast live on Sky Sports Main Event.
Fans can also follow the event through the Sky Sports Golf Podcast and stream the tournament online without a contract, though a Chrome browser is recommended for optimal video playback. As the competition unfolds, all eyes will be on the Koepka‑Lowry partnership to see whether their friendship and complementary skill sets can translate into a victory, and which other duos will rise to challenge them for the coveted Zurich Classic title.