The showdown: Rory McIlroy and Scottie Scheffler dominate the LIV pair Brooks Koepka and Bryson DeChambeau

The PGA Tour wins this round against LIV Golf.

Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy defeated Bryson DeChambeau and Brooks Koepka in the latest version of “The Match,” this time renamed “Crypto.com Showdown” on Tuesday night at Shadow Creek Golf Course in Las Vegas.

The event was billed as “the first multi-million dollar prize pool for professional athletes in the CRO cryptocurrency.” It’s unclear how much the winning team took home, but the prize money was believed to be “at least $10 million.”

The competition was divided into three six-hole segments, somewhat reminiscent of the Ryder Cup at Shadow Creek. The first six holes were best-ball holes, the middle six holes were alternate shots, and the last six holes were singles.

The PGA Tour duo had the edge in every phase of the game.

They were in first place after the first hole with the best ball and just kept going, securing their first win of the night 3 and 2 with an incredible 40-foot birdie putt from McIlroy on the fourth hole. DeChambeau had an eagle -Put from five feet away, but she missed the chance to keep the phase going.

However, the LIV team did a little damage when DeChambeau’s tee shot on No. 2 reportedly hit Scheffler’s father.

The alternative shot was closer, with the same result. Both teams had problems with putting, but McIlroy and Scheffler were exactly one stroke better, so that they took a 2-0 lead at the start of the individual phase and only had to achieve at least one draw in a direct duel.

“It got cold pretty quickly, but obviously Scottie and I got off to a really good start and from there it was just a matter of keeping the momentum going,” McIlroy said on the TNT broadcast. “It was quite a battle for the alternate shot and we were lucky to get a win on those six holes.”

The singles matches were Scheffler vs. Koepka and McIlroy vs. DeChambeau, and it was over on the 16th hole when Scheffler won his matchup and tied the game with two holes to go. McIlroy was also leading DeChambeau at the time.

PGA Tour vs. LIV Golf is finally happening as the deal draws closer

Now Tuesday’s event, which is just the latest in The Match’s history, doesn’t have much significance in the grand scheme of things. However, it was a step in the right direction in the battle between the tour and LIV Golf – which finally appears to be nearing its end after years of turmoil between the organizations and its golfers.

There was a time when pitting two tour golfers against two LIV Golf members would have been an unthinkable idea, given how the two companies treated each other. Even after PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan shocked the golf world more than 18 months ago with the surprise framework agreement between the PGA Tour and LIV Golf, the situation remained rocky.

But recently things have changed. Saudi Arabia’s public investment fund, which backs LIV Golf, is reportedly close to a deal to acquire a minority stake in PGA Tour Enterprises. According to a Bloomberg report last week, the PIF would get about 6% of PGA Tour Enterprises.

While the details of this deal are not yet known and it is unclear when (or if) it will actually close, it is the closest we have come to a deal since the golf world first collapsed. The fact that McIlroy completely changed his stance on LIV after being one of the strongest opponents of the willingness to take part in a televised event pitting the two leagues against each other is a perfect example of this.

McIlroy and DeChambeau even hurled vicious attacks at each other in the lead-up to the event, just like old times, as they referenced McIlroy’s brutal collapse at the US Open earlier this summer.

If nothing else, top players from both leagues are willing to come together and are going out of their way to prove it at events like Tuesday’s in Las Vegas. Now it’s up to the leagues themselves to actually get a deal done.

Until then, we’ll have to wait for the Masters in April to see the best golfers on the same course at the same time.