The stage is set in Dallas as LIV Golf closes out its 2025 season with the Team Championship. After 13 events across nine countries, the final stop at The Cardinal Saint John is bringing the circuit’s unique team format to a head. Twelve squads are in play this time, no byes, and every contest begins at the quarterfinal stage. Two singles matches and one alternate-shot showdown will determine which teams advance, making every pick in the selection a gamble with consequences. But don’t think the picks will come without an added touch of drama. It’s LIV after all.

For Smash GC Captain Brooks Koepka, this gamble has turned personal. When the brackets shook out, Dustin Johnson – the captain of 4Aces – chose Smash GC, setting up a head-to-head with Koepka. When asked about the pairing,  Johnson downplayed his pick. “Well, there wasn’t really any other choice.” By the time it was DJ’s chance to choose, most of the picks were already done – Jon Rahm‘s Legion XIII have chosen Martin Kaymer‘s Cleeks Golf Club, Bryson DeChambeau‘s Crushers GC had gone for Ian Poulter‘s Majesticks GC, Sergio Garcia‘s Fireballs went for Phil Mickelson‘s HyFlyers and Joaquin Niemann‘s Torque GC had picked Bubba Watson‘s RangeGoats GC.

When asked about this pairing, Kopeka kept it blunt. The two had met before at the 2022 Dell Match Play, where Johnson got the better of him. So on paper, this matchup might look like a shot at redemption, but Koepka wasn’t buying into that narrative. “I don’t owe anybody anything. He doesn’t owe me anything. I just think it’s a good matchup. The teams, I think it’s probably – it’s definitely, I think, one of the tougher matchups,” he said at the LIV Golf Team Championship selection show and press conference.

From their team’s side, Patrick Reed is set to face Talor Gooch, while Harold Varner III and Thomas Pieters will go up against Graeme McDowell and Jason Korak respectively. “They’ve got a real solid team all the way through. P-Reed is pretty good at match play. It doesn’t matter who you’re going to play on their team. They’re pretty solid. It’s a tough matchup whoever you play,” Koepka told Arlo White, LIV Golf’s broadcaster.

What makes this head-to-head even more fascinating is the history. Brooks Koepka and Johnson have long had a relationship that veers between friendship and rivalry. They have been workout partners, public supporters of each other, and by their own accounts, “good friends,” But their dynamic has often been cast under a spotlight, most infamously after the 2018 Ryder Cup, when reports surfaced of a heated altercation at the US team’s post-event party. Some outlets even hinted at a near-fight, with whispers of tensions involving DJ’s fiancée, Paulina Gretzky. Even though both players have dismissed the story as mere media hype, this rumor cemented a narrative of friction that still lingers.

Moving forward, DJ was also asked if he considered taking on Gooch, considering their history. Johnson admitted the thought crossed his mind briefly. “Maybe for a second, but I don’t know, it just didn’t make any sense.” Gooch was part of Johnson’s 4Aces GC squad that won LIV’s first team championship in 2022, before DJ reshuffled his roster in 2023 and brought in Peter Uihlein. The Oklahoman then moved on to Bubba Watson‘s RangeGoats and later Smash GC in 2024. Since then, they have gone head-to-head often, with Gooch edging Johnson at Las Vegas earlier this year. Through all this, their friendship has remained intact, with Gooch calling DJ one of the world’s top three players, as reported by Golf Monthly.

Even after all this, Johnson stuck with Koepka, brushing it off with a simple, “I mean, why wouldn’t I play against Brooks?” And Koepka, sitting beside him, was quick to clarify that the decision wasn’t really in his hands. “I didn’t get to choose it. I just put it out.” When it comes to winning potential, 4aces might have the edge over Smash, as the former has won the team championship twice (2022-23). Even with this season’s standings, Johnson’s team stands at 4th while Koepka’s stands at 8th.

With the Team Championship ready to roll in full swing, there will be many more such interesting pairings. Let’s have a look at them.

Old rivalries and new clashes set the stage

The Team Championship is throwing up some intriguing battles, starting with Bryson DeChambeau against Lee Westwood. Their history goes back to the Ryder Cup and the 2022 WGC Match Play, where Westwood edged out the American, defeating him 1 up. With Westwood’s deep Ryder Cup pedigree against DeChambeau’s red-hot form and power-driven game, it feels like a classic generational duel.

Then there’s Sergio Garcia‘s Fireballs lined up against Phil Mickelson’s HyFlyers, rekindling memories of their fiery 2016 Ryder Cup singles clash, which ended in a tie after a remarkable display of scoring — they were a combined 18 under par with a better ball score of 58. Add in Joaquin Niemann, the season’s standout performer, winning five times this season (Adelaide, Singapore, Mexico City, Virginia, UK), facing Bubba Watson, a two-time Masters champ with plenty of fight left, and the lineup speaks for itself. Last time they met was at this year’s LIV Golf UK, where Niemann won by three shots after fending off a strong challenge from Watson.