It's now official: Tiger Woods, Rory McIlroy, Jason Day and Hideki Matsuyama will square off in a one-day Skins match in Japan ahead of the first-ever PGA Tour event in the country.
The four players will compete at Accordia Golf Narashino Country Club in Chiba in an event dubbed "The Challenge: Japan Skins," which will be produced by Discovery-owned GolfTV, which distributes international PGA Tour coverage to an expanding number of markets on behalf of the Tour. The event will be played on the same host course as the inaugural Zozo Championship, which will kick off days after the skins match slated for Oct. 21.
The match, which will tee off at 1 p.m. local time, will be put on by Excel Sports Management, the firm which represents Woods. The skins game will features increasing hole values as the round continues, with additional surprises and in-round challenges. The match is expected to finish under the lights.
The skins game is the first in a number of exclusive events Woods agreed to as part of a contract with GolfTV to produce exclusive content around his play on the PGA Tour, teaching around his game, documentary series and more. ESPN first reported on the deal in July.
"After discussing The Challenge with Discovery and GolfTV, I wanted to be a part of it," Woods said in a release. "I haven’t been back to Japan since 2006 and the golf fans there are some of the best in the world. It’s a unique format and a top field with Rory, Jason and Hideki. I can’t wait to play against them on a global stage."
Days later, the foursome will play in the Zozo Championship, a no-cut, 78-player event with a $9.75 million purse. It will likely be Woods' only PGA Tour appearance before hosting the Hero World Challenge in the Bahamas before captaining the American Presidents Cup team at Royal Melbourne in Australia in December.
GolfTV is unavailable in the United States. However, Golf Channel will simulcast The Challenge: Japan Skins starting at 11 p.m. Eastern on Oct. 20. Fans in the United Kingdom and Ireland can watch the match by subscribing to a monthly GolfTV pass.
