McIlroy and McDowell can't meet until Match Play final

Rory McIlroy and Graeme McDowell at Wentworth last year. Picture Stuart Adams www.golffile.ie

World rankings falls for Rory McIlroy and Graeme McDowell mean they cannot meet in this week's WGC-Accenture World Match Play Championship unless they reach Sunday's final on Dove Mountain outside Tucson.

McIlroy was pushed from sixth down to seventh in the world by Zach Johnson and has been drawn against Boo Weekley, the world No 64, in the Ben Hogan Division at the Ritz Carlton Resort. 

A win for Bubba Watson and fifth place finish for Charl Schwartzel in the Northern Trust Open in Los Angeles saw McDowell relegated from 15th to 17th in the world.

As a result, he's in the Snead Division at Dove Mountain and will face big-hitting Gary Woodland in Wednesday's opening round.

If McIlroy beats Weekley, he will take on the winner of Lee Westwood and the impressive young American Harris English and may have to see off Ian Poulter later in the wee.

If McDowell, the reigning Volvo World Matchplay champion, beat Woodland, he will take on the winner of the hugely talented Hideki Matsuyama of Japan or Ryder Cup team mate Martin Kaymer.

Click [Brackets] for the full draw PDF

Here are the first round matches

Starting tee - Time - Match No - 

1 07:25 AM Match 1 Ian Poulter, ENG vs Rickie Fowler, USA           

1 07:35 AM Match 2 Jimmy Walker, USA vs Branden Grace, ZAF           

1 07:45 AM Match 3 Bubba Watson, USA vs Mikko Ilonen, FIN           

1 07:55 AM Match 4 Keegan Bradley, USA vs Jonas Blixt, SWE           

1 08:05 AM Match 5 Steve Stricker, USA vs George Coetzee, ZAF           

1 08:15 AM Match 6 Graham DeLaet, CAN vs Patrick Reed, USA           

1 08:25 AM Match 7 Jordan Spieth, USA vs Pablo Larrazabal, ESP           

1 08:35 AM Match 8 Thomas Bjorn, DNK vs Francesco Molinari, ITA           

1 08:45 AM Match 9 Sergio Garcia, ESP vs Marc Leishman, AUS           

1 08:55 AM Match 10 Bill Haas, USA vs Miguel A. Jimenez, ESP           

1 09:05 AM Match 11 Dustin Johnson, USA vs Peter Hanson, SWE           

1 09:15 AM Match 12 Victor Dubuisson, FRA vs Kevin Streelman, USA           

1 09:25 AM Match 13 Jason Day, AUS vs Thorbjorn Olesen, DNK           

1 09:35 AM Match 14 Jamie Donaldson, WAL vs Billy Horschel, USA           

1 09:45 AM Match 15 Matt Kuchar, USA vs Bernd Wiesberger, AUT           

1 09:55 AM Match 16 Ryan Moore, USA vs Joost Luiten, NED           

1 10:05 AM Match 17 Charl Schwartzel, ZAF vs Kevin Stadler, USA           

1 10:15 AM Match 18 Jim Furyk, USA vs Chris Kirk, USA           

1 10:25 AM Match 19 Graeme McDowell, NIR vs Gary Woodland, USA         

1 10:35 AM Match 20 Hideki Matsuyama, JPN vs Martin Kaymer, DEU           

1 10:45 AM Match 21 Brandt Snedeker, USA vs David Lynn, ENG           

1 10:55 AM Match 22 Webb Simpson, USA vs Thongchai Jaidee, THA           

1 11:05 AM Match 23 Jason Dufner, USA vs Scott Stallings, USA           

1 11:15 AM Match 24 Luke Donald, ENG vs Matteo Manassero, ITA           

1 11:25 AM Match 25 Rory McIlroy, NIR vs Boo Weekley, USA           

1 11:35 AM Match 26 Lee Westwood, ENG vs Harris English, USA           

1 11:45 AM Match 27 Zach Johnson, USA vs Richard Sterne, ZAF           

1 11:55 AM Match 28 Hunter Mahan, USA vs Gonzalo Fenz-Castano, ESP           

1 12:05 PM Match 29 Henrik Stenson, SWE vs Kiradech Aphibanrat, THA           

1 12:15 PM Match 30 Louis Oosthuizen, ZAF vs Nick Watney, USA           

1 12:25 PM Match 31 Justin Rose, ENG vs Scott Piercy, USA           

1 12:35 PM Match 32 Ernie, Els, ZAF vs Stephen Gallacher, SCO