By Steve Keating
ROCHESTER, New York (Reuters) – Spaniard Jon Rahm, Australian Cameron Smith and Briton Matt Fitzpatrick were put together on Tuesday in a star-studded group of major champions for the first two rounds of the PGA Championship.
World number one Rahm, winner of last month’s Masters, joins U.S. Open champion Fitzpatrick, and Smith, who won last year’s British Open before jumping to the LIV Golf, in a marquee threesome that will be among the early starters at Oak Hill on Thursday going off the 10th tee at 8:33 AM ET (1233 GMT).
Another power threesome of PGA Championship winners heads out at 8:11 AM ET (1211 GMT) with reigning champion Justin Thomas opening the defence of his crown in the company of Northern Ireland’s four-time major winner Rory McIlroy and double major winner Collin Morikawa.
World number two Scottie Scheffler will partner twice PGA Championship winner and LIV Golf hope Brooks Koepka and 2019 U.S. Open winner Gary Woodland.
Also carrying the LIV flag will be Phil Mickelson, the six-time major winner, partnered with world number four Patrick Cantlay and Rickie Fowler who will go out in the afternoon wave.
Dustin Johnson, who won last week’s LIV stop in Tulsa, is matched with Tokyo Olympic champion Xander Schauffele and England’s Tyrrell Hatton.
(Reporting by Steve Keating in Rochester. Editing by Toby Davis)
