Golf got a rare moment in primetime this weekend as the latest iteration of The Match took place under the lights in Florida. This time, Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy faced off against Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas at Pelican Golf Club — and the viewers got their money’s worth.
Spieth and Thomas defeated Woods and McIlroy, 3 and 2, thanks to seven birdies from the duo, but the best parts of the night had nothing to do with the golf. Instead, many of the highlights were the banter and smack talk that took place inside the ropes.
These were the 5 funniest (and most memorable) moments from The Match.
JT jabs Tiger
Before The Match even officially started, the trash talk was already heating up.
In a roundtable interview with Smylie Kaufman, Tiger told a story about Shingo Katayama warming up with a 5-wood left-handed. But when Woods began the story with the qualifier “back in my generation,” Thomas let him hear it.
“Was that back in the 50s?” Thomas said.
“Late-50s,” Tiger responded.
Jabbing Tiger is something few people in golf can get away with, but his good pal Thomas is one of them.
JT sticks to the rules
Back in 2020, Justin Thomas provided us with one of the all-time moments in The Match’s history. While commentating The Match that year, Thomas didn’t hold back when fellow announcer Charles Barkley made mention of dunking a basketball.
“Chuck, I’d love to see your fat a— try to dunk a basketball right now,” Thomas whispered.
The burn was great, but it came with a price. As Thomas revealed during this edition of The Match, the smack talk had some immediate consequences.
“I can definitely give a piece of advice,” he said. “If you call Charles Barkley a fat a—, they will not give you the drink that you requested on the golf course. I learned that pretty quickly, but other than that it was a lot of fun.”
Thomas followed his own rule this time around, and we trust his drink order was perfect every time.
Charlie outdrives Tiger
While Charlie Woods did not make an appearance at The Match, the youngster was still a topic of conversation on the broadcast. After Trevor Immelman asked Tiger about Charlie’s driving distance, we got some valuable intel about the 13-year-old’s game.
“Trev, I hate to say it, but I’ll admit it,” Tiger said. “He finally [outdrove me] a few weeks ago. I spun one, he tomahawked one, and he got me.”
Keep that in mind as you place your bets for next week’s PNC Championship.
Barkley roasts JT
Sir Charles’ banter with Thomas has always been a highlight of The Match, and this time was no different.
After congratulating Thomas on his recent wedding, TNT announcer Brian Anderson asked how the evening went.
“It was the best night of my life,” Thomas said. “I wish I could have it over again.”
Barkley, ever the antagonist, wasted no time with his reply.
“Well, it’s early,” Barkley said. “You could do it again.”
It was a sharp quip from Barkley, but would you expect anything different?
Rory chirps Spieth’s putting
Jordan Spieth has had some electric moments on the greens, but he’s also had some head-scratching misses. And during The Match, Rory McIlroy made sure to chirp Spieth about his putting.
On the one-club challenge hole, both McIlroy and Spieth faced 1-foot putts for their bogeys. But with irons in their hands instead of putters, gimme range was a bit closer.
“Good, good, Rory?” Spieth asked.
“I’ve seen you miss those with a putter,” McIlroy said.
A well-placed jab that cuts deep. Masterclass from McIlroy on trash talk.
