The Match: Best moments as golf’s biggest names, NFL and NBA stars put on a show for good causes
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Updated 27/06/2023 at 10:31 GMT
The latest edition of The Match will see the Kansas City Chiefs’ Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce take on the Golden State Warriors’ Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson on June 29 at Wynn Golf Club in Las Vegas. Ahead of the event, let's look back at some of the best moments of this entertaining event. Stream The Match live on eurosport and discovery+.
The Match : Thomas and Spieth beat pair of Woods and McIlroy
The latest incarnation of The Match will see Kansas City Chiefs’ Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce take on the Golden State Warriors’ Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson on June 29 at Wynn Golf Club in Las Vegas.
This entertaining and charity-boosting series of exhibition events has provided a number of highlights down the years.
The Match debuted in 2018 when Woods took on Phil Mickelson in a head-to-head showdown at Shadow Creek in Las Vegas.
Mickelson claimed the glory and the $9 million prize money at the fourth extra hole with the dramatic conclusion played out under floodlights.
“I know big picture, your career is the greatest of all-time. I’ve seen you do things that are just remarkable," Mickelson said to Woods following his triumph, which also generated $800,000 for charity.
"But just know I will not ever let you live this one down. I will bring it up every time I see you. I will wear this belt buckle every time I see you. It’s not the Masters, it’s not the US Open, I know, but it’s something. It’s just nice to have a little something on you.”
It was no surprise that the success of the event spurned a sequel, The Match: Champions for Charity that saw Mickelson partner with NFL legend Tom Brady, and Woods team up with another football icon in the form of Peyton Manning.
Woods and Manning claimed a narrow victory at Medalist Golf Club in Florida with their banter-laden battle also generating an incredible $20m to help fight the global Covid-19 pandemic.
"To be behind the ropes in these guys' worlds, to be in the arena with them, it was really a special experience," reflected Manning. "I was not comfortable the entire time. Knowing $20 million was raised and helping people going through tough times, it was an honour to be invited."
The third staging of the event in 2020, The Match: Champions for Change, had an NBA theme with Hall of Famer Charles Barkley joining Team Mickelson and Manning recruiting Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry.
Stone Canyon Golf Club in Oro Valley, Arizona was the venue for their clash that saw Mickelson and Barkley cruise to a comfortable and entertaining victory.
More importantly, $5.4m was raised for Historically Black Colleges and Universities, the Thurgood Marshall College Fund and the United Negro College Fund. More than 3.5 million meals were also donated to Feeding America
As Mickelson congratulated his much-maligned partner following their unexpected victory, he joked: “Two people thought this was going to happen, you and me. That’s it!”
The next showdown in July last year saw Mickelson team up with Brady once again to take on big-hitting PGA Tour star Bryson DeChambeau and Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers at the picturesque Big Sky in Montana.
The jokes and the trash-talking flowed once more, but this time DeChambeau and Rodgers were victorious in a big-hitting display punctuated by the odd moment of brilliance.
"Phil's 2-0 without me, and 0-2 with me," Brady said following his team's loss. "So I feel like I have a lot of work to do with my golf game."
DeChambeau and Rodgers were not the only winners with the event raising $2.6m for My Brother's Keeper and generating 6.3m meals for Feeding America.
The next iteration of The Match doubled as a grudge match of sorts as Dechambeau went toe-to-toe with PGA Tour rival Brooks Koepka after a year-long spat that dominated headlines throughout 2021.
A 12-hole contest at the Wynn Golf Club in Las Vegas lasted just nine with Koepka dominating proceedings on his way to a 5&3 victory. “Not gonna lie,” Koepka said after his win, “I just wanted to spank him.”
Despite not teeing it up in this particular made-for-TV event, Mickelson still managed to grab a headline or two having taken on commentary duties alongside Barkley.
The next staging of The Match in 2022 was an all-NFL affair that saw Brady and Rodgers team up and take on two rising quarterback stars in the form of the Buffalo Bills’ Josh Allen and Kansas City Chiefs’ Patrick Mahomes.
Allen set the tone for the clash by unveiling a golf ball featuring Brady’s unflattering combine photo only for his success-laden rival to reveal his own special ball embossed with the Vince Lombardi trophy.
The old guard eventually rallied to beat their younger rivals in another 12-hole contest that was once again staged at the Wynn Golf Club in Las Vegas. It was left to Rodgers to wrap up the victory with a birdie putt on the final green.
"Things got pretty serious, and we buckled down a little bit," Rodgers said post-round, having secured the bragging rights for his team. "These two were playing pretty good, and we didn't want to come out of here with an L."
The most recent edition of The Match came at the end of last year and witnessed the return of Woods to centre stage alongside a few friends under the lights at a new venue - the Pelican Golf Club in Belleair, Florida.
It was a rare outing for Woods, who is still recovering from injuries sustained in a car crash in 2021, and he was paired with Rory McIlroy against fellow PGA TOUR stars Justin Thomas and Jordan Spieth - with all three making their debut in The Match.
In the end it was Thomas and Spieth who dominated on their way to a 3&2 victory in a 12-hole contest that also raised funds for those impacted by Hurricane Ian that caused devastation in the region a couple of months earlier.
"Hey Tiger and Rory, what happened?" Spieth and Thomas later joked on social media.
"How do you lose to us two?” asked Spieth. “It's alright, everybody does!" added Thomas.
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