The Match 2022: Jordan Spieth, Justin Thomas favorites to beat Tiger Woods, Rory McIlroy?
Justin Thomas and Jordan Spieth are set to take on their favorites, Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy, at The Match this Saturday, December 10.
Woods will return after a brief break due to injury in the seventh edition of the championship, while Thomas, Rory, and Spieth will make their tournament debuts.
The current world No. 1, Rory McIlroy, has been in the best form out of the four players at the Match. He clinched the European crown this summer, won the FedEx Cup title, and registered a fresh win at the DP World Tour Championship. But doubting Spieth and Thomas will be unfair. The two have been together since college and have dominated the golf course in several Ryder and President's Cups.
While Tiger Woods has not fully recovered from his injury, McIlroy is playing the best golf of his career. It will be more interesting to watch who will clinch the championship, which was incepted in 2018.
JT and JS were unstoppable in the Quail Hollow Cup and garnered a 4-0-0 record playing for the team at the 2022 Presidents Cup.
As a team, Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas can give tough competition to Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy, and it's undoubtedly hard to predict who will clinch the trophy this year.
The excitement is growing as the tournament is nearing, so blend your coffee and renew your Discovery Plus subscription to binge-watch the four incredibly amazing golfers playing under the lights of the Pelican Golf Club Course.
"You guys have more majors than us"- said Justin Thomas ahead of The Match
Thomas and Spieth are very excited to play against Woods and McIlroy. Even though they don't have as many titles as Woods and McIlroy do, they are better as a team.
Tiger and Rory will team up for the first time, while JD and JS have been playing together since their college days.
In a pre-tournament press conference, the four talked about The Match. Justin Thomas said:
"You guys have more majors than us, you have more FedEx Cups than us, you both have an airplane, and we don't, let's just go to the open, so we don't get it used against us in our match."
Spieth said Tiger and Rory are quick and witty. At the conference, the World No. 14 explained:
"They're both quick and witty. I was saying to Justin that we might have to take the nice guys' route, which isn't normal for us in these types of matches."
Tiger Woods was slated to play at the 2022 Hero World Challenge but could not compete at the championship as he developed plantar fasciitis right before the tournament and thus withdrew his name. However, he is confident about playing in The Match and winning the trophy for the second time.
Woods took revenge on Phil Mickelson while playing with Peyton Manning in the second edition of the competition. It is worth noting that Mickelson defeated Tiger Woods in the inaugural season of the Match.