“I shot 62, 63 and lost money” – Tiger Woods names his favorite celebrity game
Tiger Woods has been in professional golf for nearly two decades. Over the years, golf has become a bit of a celebrity sport. There are celebrity events all the time and most professional athletes take up golf in their free time. Everyone from Michael Phelps to Patrick Mahomes is a pretty avid golfer.
That wasn't always the case, however. There was a time when golf was largely restricted to golfers. Not every athlete was golfing on television. Sometime in late 1990s or early 2000s, an iconic celebrity match was held.
Woods teamed up with Tom Glavine, Greg Maddux, and John Smoltz, at a time when all three were pitching for the Atlanta Braves. The four put on an incredible performance, one that left the actual golfer on the losing end.
He recounted his incredible match, according to Golf.com:
“That was epic. I shot 62, 63 and lost money.”
He would later admit that Smoltz might have been the best celebrity golfer he'd ever played with. It was either him or former Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo.
It was a fond memory for the golfer and he recalls losing with rose-colored glasses. That doesn't happen all that often.
He has long been an avid baseball fan, so teaming up with one of the most iconic trios in Major League Baseball at the time had to be an incredible experience, even if he lost money in the process.
Tiger Woods set to play in Capital One's The Match
Speaking of celebrity golf matches, Capital One has arguably been at the center of this phenomenon. Every so often, they host what is called The Match. It's not an official PGA Tour event and has morphed into a bit of a celebrity match.
It first started in 2018 and pitted Woods against the new face of LIV Golf, Phil Mickelson. They may have been pro golfers, but this was a celebrity match at its core.
The subsequent iteration saw actual celebrities get involved. NFL quarterbacks Tom Brady and Peyton Manning joined. Manning and Woods defeated Mickelson and Brady.
Mickelson returned, this time alongside former NBA MVP Charles Barkley. They defeated the duo of NBA superstar Stephen Curry and Manning.
Bryson DeChambeau joined the next one and competed alongside NFL quarterback Aaron Rodgers. They defeated Mickelson and Brady.
The next event returned to purely golfers. Brooks Koepka defeated DeChambeau that year in a head-to-head matchup without any help from teammates.
The most recent iteration saw purely NFL stars. Mahomes and fellow quarterback Josh Allen teamed up against Brady and Rodgers.
The elder statesmen won by a single shot.
Woods will return to The Match this year and will team up with Rory McIlroy. They will face off against Justin Thomas and Jordan Spieth. The event will be held on December 10.
The Match will likely continue to grow as the game of golf grows. Expect more celebrity golfers like Phelps and others to get involved when the opportunity arises. Perhaps someone could do as well as Woods said Smoltz, Glavine, and Maddux did.