With the PGA Tour not returning for another week and the LIV circuit also not playing, the tournament will take centre stage for golf fans this week for what could be a thrilling event.

Some animosity has already been aired about 18 LIV players taking their place in the field and with the PGA Tour’s highest profile advocate, Rory McIlroy, headlining the tournament there appears scope for fireworks beyond the course.

Hopefully the competition is fierce and the controversy minimal but there is a definite crackle in the air as we wait for Thursday to roll around.

DEFENDING CHAMPION: Billy Horschel became just the second American to win the European Tour’s flagship event courtesy of a thrilling 72nd hole birdie.

Starting the day two shots behind Francesco Laporta, Horschel crafted a fine round of seven-under 65 for a one shot victory over Kiradech Aphibarnrat and England’s Laurie Canter.

Arnold Palmer is the only other American to claim the title at Wentworth, that victory coming in 1975.

RIGHT: Billy Horschel claimed America's second ever win at this event last year and returns to defend this week. PHOTO: Andrew Redington/Getty Images.

COURSE: Wentworth’s West Course – also known as the Burma Road course – is perhaps England’s best known golf course. It is certainly it’s most televised.

Long-time host of the annual World Matchplay invitational event, the course was as familiar to many through the 1980’s and 1990’s as Augusta National is to viewers now.

With back-to-back par-5s to end the round, Wentworth is home to some of the great finishes in televised golf history and held a special place in the hearts of many golf fans.

However, beginning in 2009, the course has undergone several major changes at the hands of Ernie Els’ design company (in collaboration with European Tour design) and much of that work has not been well received.

The difficulty of the course has increased markedly but there has been little added in the way of interest with the biggest change, the addition of a creek in front of the 18th green, the most controversial.

The opportunity for a player down the leaderboard to finish with back-to-back eagles and snatch victory late Sunday was all but removed with the home hole now more often approached with a third shot than a second.

The snaking water hazard of the 18th hole on the West Course has taken some of the excitement out of the final test. PHOTO: Andrew Redington/Getty Images.

The event itself remains the most important on the European schedule but the course has done little to add to its cache in the 21st century.

Despite the added difficulty the field each year finds little to curtail scoring with the winning total generally closer to 20-under than 10-under.

RELATED: So-called expert golf tips for this week

PRIZEMONEY: US$8,000,000

PLAYERS TO WATCH: The Open and newly co-sanctioned Scottish Open aside, this is the strongest field to gather in Europe all year.

Led by World No.3 Rory McIlroy, three of the world’s top-10 and five of the game’s top-20 ranked players will be in attendance this week.

McIlroy – the winner here in 2014 –will attract the bulk of attention and given his heroics at East Lake a fortnight ago that is no surprise.

He is also clearly motivated by the ongoing battle with the Saudi backed LIV Golf saying two weeks ago he would find it ‘hard to stomach’ the presence of 18 LIV players in this week’s field.

Rory McIlroy will be a major focus again this week, and he is a more than likely contender at Wentworth. PHOTO: Ross Kinnaird/Getty Images.

Expending all that off course energy could well take its toll on McIlroy though even if he plays less than his best there is no reason he can’t contend this week.

Perhaps the bigger threat this week will be World No.6 Jon Rahm in just his second appearance at the tournament.

He was runner-up in 2019, and while he hasn’t been in peak form in 2022 he has been far from poor.

Like McIlroy, he stands out in this company, and it would be more surprising if he was not at the pointy end of the board on Sunday than if he was.

Defending champion Horschel is not only a world top-20 ranked player but has shown a real liking for both the event and the course.

His two trips to Wentworth have yielded a T4 (2019) and a victory so his confidence will be high, particularly after winning his seventh PGA Tour title at The Memorial in June.

Among the LIV players teeing up is McIlroy’s nemesis Patrick Reed who has shown a liking for Wentworth in the past.

The 2018 Masters champion has teed up twice in the event and finished top-five both times and will no doubt take extra motivation from the presence of the Northern Irishman in the field.

Outside the biggest names England’s Tyrrell Hatton has a love/hate relationship with Wentworth.

In eight tries he has missed the cut three times, two of those coming before he won in 2020 and the other last year when defending.

72-HOLE RECORD: 267 (-21, Byeong Hyun An, 2015)

18-HOLE RECORD: 62 (-10, Robert Karlsson (2010), Thomas Bjorn (2014), Alex Noren (2017)

PAST AUSSIE WINNERS: Rodger Davis (1986), Mike Harwood (1990)

AUSTRALIANS IN THE FIELD: Scott Hend, Adam Scott, Min Woo Lee, Lucas Herbert, Jason Scrivener, Wade Ormsby and Maverick Antcliff.

TV TIMES*
Round 1: Thursday (Fox Sports 503 9pm – 3am)
Round 2: Friday (Fox Sports 503 9pm – 3am)
Round 3: Saturday (Fox Sports 503 9pm – 1:30am)
Round 4: Sunday (Fox Sports 503 8pm – 1:30am)
*AEST, check local guides