As a native New Englander, I’ve been fortunate enough to watch Tom Brady quarterback the Patriots over the last couple decades. But you don’t have to be a Pats fan to appreciate the 6th-round pick’s dedication to doing the work and his unparalleled ability to stay cool under pressure. But what’s the best football player of all time like on the golf course? Here are five things to know about Tom Brady the golfer.
1. He’s a single-digit handicap.
Brady, who carries an 8.1 handicap, says his game is “somewhere between poor and pitiful” entering The Match II, and if you’re looking to bet against Brady, you’ve got some ammo. Last year, Brady said he was playing golf in Florida when he threw down a 95 at MacArthur. After that, he said, he didn’t think things could get any worse — until he headed over to Medalist, the site of this week’s match. Then he shot 106.
But if you’re looking for optimism, there’s space for that, too. In a recent interview with Boston-based radio station WEEI, James Driscoll recalled playing the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am alongside Brady. After a slow start to the week, Driscoll said he suddenly caught fire on day three, firing a three-under 33 on the front nine at Pebble Beach.
“He basically played nine holes like a tour pro — hitting his drives 300 yards, hitting his seven iron like 180 (yards) and making putts. He literally played those nine holes like a tour pro. I was like, ‘Oh my God. This guy is incredible,’” Driscoll said.
In short, Brady sounds like a volatile 8.1 handicap. You can see his scores here:
2. He’s got some famous memberships.
One strange quirk about Brady’s time in the Boston area is that even though he lived next-door to The Country Club at Brookline, it took two years for the star quarterback to get his membership approved, which finally happened in 2017. Still, he got a few years’-worth of play in before signing a deal with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers this offseason.
In preparation for the move to Florida, Brady got some premier golf lined up when he joined Seminole in Juno Beach, Fla. — the site of last week’s TaylorMade skins game. He’s also reportedly a member at Riviera in Los Angeles.
3. He’s played Augusta National with Rory McIlroy and Jordan Spieth.
Not at the same time, either! If we’re making Manning-Brady comparisons, Manning still gets the Augusta edge — the guy’s a member, after all. But Brady played Augusta alongside Rory McIlroy in 2015…
Better yet, he played another match at Augusta against Jordan Spieth in which Spieth bested him on the last — and then got the silent treatment.
“He made bogey and I made birdie for a two-shot flip on the last,” Spieth explained on the Dan Patrick Show. “And you’re supposed to go in at Augusta and, you know, have lunch, and hang out, and he didn’t say a word to me for like an hour and a half. I mean, the most competitive, like, I feel like I’ve very, very competitive, and he is the most competitive human being I’ve ever met.”
