SHANGHAI, China — Tiger Woods is expected to get a $2 million appearance fee and Rory McIlroy $1 million for their one-day exhibition match Monday in Zhengzhou, China.
The top-ranked McIlroy and Woods, a 14-time major winner, will play their first head-to-head match in an event without other competitors at Lake Jinsha International Golf Club.
The 18-hole medal-match has been dubbed the “Duel at Lake Jinsha.”
“We’re going to try and put on a good show, shoot a low round and have a little bit of fun,” said Woods.
McIlroy finished second Sunday in the BMW Masters in Shanghai, while Woods tied for fourth in the $6.1 million CIMB Classic in Malaysia.
McIlroy visited the Lake Jinsha course in north-central China last year as part of the seven-day, seven-stop, 18-hole “China Challenge” that also featured Lee Westwood, Ian Poulter and China’s Liang Wen-chong.
The four played just three holes at Lake Jinsha, with McIlroy posting par, birdie and bogey before moving on to the next Challenge stop. Westwood was the eventual winner.
“The only thing I remember is that just so many people turned up to the golf course to watch the four of us,” McIlroy said.
Woods bundled McIlroy out of the Turkish Airlines World Golf Final earlier in October in an event featuring six others.
“I do treat these exhibition matches as a bit of fun and it will be good to get a little bit of bragging rights,” McIlroy said. “Of course I will be a lot more hungry this time against Tiger than I was in Turkey … My game is a lot better and hopefully it will be a closer match..”