World No. 1 and two-time Hero World Challenge champion Scottie Scheffler and defending champion Hideki Matsuyama were announced on Monday as leading a star-studded field at the 2026 Hero World Challenge.
Hosted by Tiger Woods, the 20-man field features seven of the top 10 players in the world, including No. 3 Cameron Young, winner of the Players Championship in March, and No. 4 Matt Fitzpatrick, a three-time Tour winner this season.
Japan’s Matsuyama stuffed his approach at the first playoff to set up birdie and defeat Alex Noren to win the Tiger trophy last year. Matsuyama, a two-time winner at Albany in 2016 and 2025, and Scheffler, who won back-to-back titles in 2023 and 2024, are both looking to become the first three-time winner at Albany.
Will Tiger Woods play in the 2026 Hero World Challenge?
Missing from the announcement was any news about if the tournament host would play. Woods, 50, has often used the 72-hole, no-cut event to mount one of his latest comebacks from injury. Woods hasn't played in an official PGA Tour event since the 2024 British Open at Royal Troon Golf Club, where he missed the cut. He had hinted at potentially playing at the Masters in April but that was before he was arrested on March 27, after an SUV rollover crash on Jupiter Island, Florida, not far from his home, where deputies found hydrocodone pills and noted signs of impairment. He spent time at a rehab facility in Switzerland and has kept a low profile ever since. There has been no indication from his camp when or if he will play again.
Hero World Challenge field notables
The Hero field currently features 106 combined Tour victories and six golfers who have amassed 11 major championships. Eleven 2026 Presidents Cup participants, including eight from the victorious U.S. team, are in the field.
Three players – Si Woo Kim, Ryan Gerard and Jacob Bridgeman – will make their Hero World Challenge debuts. Of the 17 players in the field, none ranked higher worse than 33rd in the Official World Golf Ranking (Akshay Bhatia).
The 2026 field includes golfers from six countries (U.S., England, Korea, Scotland, Japan and Austria). The remaining three exemptions into the field will be announced at a later date.
2026 Hero World Challenge field
Name, Official World Golf Ranking as of 8/31/26 eligibility date, country
- Scottie Scheffler (1), U.S.
- Cameron Young (3), U.S.
- Matt Fitzpatrick (4), England
- Russell Henley (6), U.S.
- Chris Gotterup (7), U.S.
- Sam Burns (9), U.S.
- Xander Schauffele (10), U.S.
- Si Woo Kim (13), Korea
- J.J. Spaun (17), U.S.
- Robert MacIntyre (18), Scotland
- Justin Thomas (21), U.S.
- Ryan Gerard (22), U.S.
- Hideki Matsuyama (26), Japan
- Jacob Bridgeman (28), U.S.
- Tom Kim (30), Korea
- Sepp Straka (32), Austria
- Akshay Bhatia (33), U.S.
- TBA tournament exemption
- TBA tournament exemption
- TBA tournament exemption
Tournament rounds will be held Dec. 3-6 at Albany, bringing the event back to The Bahamas for its 11th year. Live television coverage of the Hero will be provided by Golf Channel during all four rounds and NBC during the third and final rounds.
This article originally appeared on Golfweek: Scottie Scheffler, Hideki Matsuyama headline 2026 Hero World Challenge field
