The draw for Thursday and Friday was announced on Monday after Stenson had returned the Claret Jug in a ceremony on the first tee.
Johnson and McIlroy, who have each been hampered by injuries in recent months, will be joined by Charl Schwartzel for the opening rounds on England’s north-west coast. The high-profile group is due out at 2:48pm local time on Thursday and 9:47am the following morning.
Kim Si-woo of South Korea will go out with Stenson and Spieth, while U.S. Open winner Brooks Koepka is playing with local favourite Tommy Fleetwood and world number two Hideki Matsuyama.
Other notable groups see Masters champion Sergio Garcia together with Jason Day and 2015 Open winner Zach Johnson, while Jon Rahm is alongside Lee Westwood and Patrick Reed.
Phil Mickelson - the runner-up to Stenson in last year’s thrilling duel at Royal Troon - will be joined by Francesco Molinari and Marc Leishman.
Rickie Fowler, Adam Scott and Paul Casey will play together and Thursday’s first group - out at 6:35am - is comprised of Mark O’Meara, the Open champion at Birkdale 19 years ago, Chris Wood and Ryan Moore.
Selected groups - all times local (BST)
6:35am Thursday / 11:36am Friday: Mark O’Meara, Chris Wood, Ryan Moore7:52am Thursday / 12:53pm Friday: Jason Dufner, Branden Grace, Bryson DeChambeau8:03am Thursday / 1:04pm Friday: Alex Noren, Russell Knox, Ian Poulter9:36am Thursday / 2:37pm Friday: Padraig Harrington, Pat Perez, Thomas Pieters9:47am Thursday / 2:48pm Friday: Henrik Stenson, Kim Si-woo, Jordan Spieth9:58am Thursday / 2:59pm Friday: Louis Oosthuizen, Justin Rose, Justin Thomas10:09am Thursday / 3:10pm Friday: Brooks Koepka, Hideki Matsuyama, Tommy Fleetwood1:04pm Thursday / 8:03am Friday: Zach Johnson, Jason Day, Sergio Garcia1:26pm Thursday / 8:25am Friday: Rickie Fowler, Adam Scott, Paul Casey2:48pm Thursday / 9:47am Friday: Rory McIlroy, Dustin Johnson, Charl Schwartzel2:59pm Thursday / 9:58am Friday: Jon Rahm, Patrick Reed, Lee Westwood3:10pm Thursday / 10:09am Friday: Phil Mickelson, Francesco Molinari, Marc Leishman3:21pm Thursday / 10:20am Friday: Scott Hend, Rafael Cabrera Bello, Bubba Watson
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