By Joel Beall
As his stature has rocketed the past season, it’s rare for Justin Thomas to be upstaged on the marquee, particularly in his own pairing. But this is no ordinary pairing. Thomas, the reigning PGA Tour Player of the Year, will play with Tiger Woods during the first round of this week’s Hero World Challenge. The duo will tee off at 12:05 p.m. on Thursday at the Albany resort in the Bahamas.

Woods and Thomas have never played together in an official PGA Tour event. However, Woods noted on his blog in September that he was competing against the 2017 PGA champ and Rickie Fowler in putting contests during his rehabilitation, with Thomas also stopping by to chip.

Woods, who runs the Hero event through his foundation, is making his return to competitive golf after 10-month injury sabbatical. The 14-time major winner last teed it up at the Dubai Desert Classic, withdrawing due to back complications from the overseas flight. He missed the rest of the 2017 campaign after undergoing surgery in April.

Other notable pairings at the Hero include World No. 1 Dustin Johnson with U.S. Open winner Brooks Koepka, an Open Championship rematch between Jordan Spieth and Matt Kuchar, and Race to Dubai winner Tommy Fleetwood playing with Justin Rose. The Hero World Challenge is an unofficial money event on the PGA Tour; Hideki Matsuyama is the defending champ.