Rick Shiels admits he got something ‘very wrong’ about Rory McIlroy during The Showdown

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The Showdown has now been and gone as Rory McIlroy and Scottie Scheffler comfortably beat off the LIV Golf duo of Bryson DeChambeau and Brooks Koepka in Las Vegas.

McIlroy and Scheffler made light work of the American duo to get a win and score a major one-up for the PGA Tour.

Going into the event, there was plenty of speculation about how things might pan out. And while the feel of the event was one of fun, it was still a serious performance from the quartet.

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Of course, Rory McIlroy was the star of the show as he produced some fine golf to help his team win.

And in doing so, McIlroy seems to have completely proven popular YouTuber Rick Shiels wrong.

Rory McIlroy proves Rick Shiels wrong at The Showdown

Before the event got underway, Shiels was discussing how things might pan out on his podcast.

At the time, Shiels suggested McIlroy would play badly due to pressure.

“This is how I think it is going to go; I think it’s going to be Scottie Scheffler versus Bryson and Brooks. I envision a Rory no-show,” Shiels said.

“I feel like he has a lot of pressure on his shoulders in this match and if he starts seeing Bryson bombing it, he hits it a long way Rory, but I feel like he is going to be almost encouraged to try and hit it harder than he needs to and I feel like that is going to put him in some trouble.”

However, after McIlroy starred in the event, Shiels has now backtracked and has taken to X to admit he got it ‘very wrong’ about McIlroy.

How has the world of golf reacted to The Showdown?

In the main, for the first event of its kind between two tours, The Showdown seems to have had mixed reviews.

There’s been plenty of talking points, of which one of the main has been fans slamming Bryson DeChambeau for being a sore loser.

One of the major gripes among some fans was the TV coverage. Whether that is something that can be improved for the future, remains to be seen.

Furthermore, Rex Hoggard lamented Charles Barkley for talking over the players as well, something which has been picked up on social media as well.

For a first time, it wasn’t the end of the world and more crossovers will be good in the future. But there is plenty to learn from, and more the two tours can do to improve the product.