Rory McIlroy and Scottie Scheffler headline star-studded field for CJ Cup at Congaree Golf Club

Rory McIlroy will headline a stacked field as he defends the CJ Cup in North Carolina next week.

McIlroy secured victory last year by a single stroke from Collin Morikawa when it was held at the Summit Club.

A new venue will be in play, with the players heading from Las Vegas to Congaree Golf Club in Hilton Head.

McIlroy was always set to tee it up after his win last year, and he will take on a high-class field.

In all, 15 of the world’s top 20 will be in action – with Jon Rahm (5) Justin Thomas (8), Collin Morikawa (9), Matt Fitzpatrick (10), Viktor Hovland (11), Sam Burns (12), Jordan Spieth (13), Tom Kim (15), Cameron Young (16), Max Homa (17), Billy Horschel (18), Hideki Matsuyama (19) and Sungjae Im (20) also teeing it up.

“The strength is not just in the top 10,” Bruce Davidson, director of golf at Congaree, said. “Just look at the quality depth. The field has the look of a major championship.

“You don’t see that kind of quality every week.”

It will be McIlroy’s first appearance on the PGA Tour since securing FedEx Cup glory.

There will be 78 players competing in an event that first came on the schedule in 2017.

World No. 8 Thomas won the inaugural event and was victorious again in 2019, meaning he has the chance to secure a hat-trick next weekend.

It was part of the PGA Tour’s global schedule and took place in South Korea for three years, but was shifted to America following the Covid-19 pandemic.

There is hope that it will return to its original venue at Nine Bridges on Jeju Island in the future.