A cross-sport rivalry will be featured in the eighth edition of The Match as Golden State Warriors stars Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson square off against reigning Super Bowl champions Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce of the Kansas City Chiefs. The charity golf exhibition welcomes the four titans of their sports to Wynn Golf Club in Las Vegas, Nevada, on Thursday.
Unlike the first seven iterations, this will be the first edition of The Match to feature an all-NFL side vs. an all-NBA side and the third of which to be held at Wynn, which was last featured in Mahomes' The Match debut last summer alongside Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen. The two All-Pro quarterbacks ultimately fell to two legends of the game: Aaron Rodgers and Tom Brady.
A couple years prior, Curry participated in The Match in an eclectic foursome. Paired with Peyton Manning, Curry and his teammate fell 4 and 3 to Charles Barkley and six-time major champion Phil Mickelson.
Curry and Mahomes are known entities on this stage and may leave the door open for either Thompson or Kelce to be the difference maker. Kelce finished 64th in the 2022 American Century Championship out of 87 competitors in Lake Tahoe. Curry finished T16 and Mahomes T51 that same year. So, Thompson's game is the great unknown here.
Curry with a deep three ⛳
— Basketball Forever (@bballforever_) June 15, 2023
(via @NBCSports) pic.twitter.com/bwiBv4a0EE
There is sure to be plenty of trash talking between the two -- especially with the brash Kelce involved. The Chiefs have gone to three of the last four Super Bowls, raising the Lombardi Trophy twice. Meanwhile, Curry and Thompson have claimed four Larry O'Brien trophies together with their most recent NBA title coming in 2022.
The Match 8
Viewing information
Date: Thursday, June 29 | Time 7 p.m. ET
Location: Wynn Golf Club — Las Vegas, Nevada
Broadcast: TNT | Simulcast: TBS, truTV, HLN | Live stream: Bleacher Report app
Format
The Match will be contested under 12 holes of match play and scramble format. Each player will tee off with his own ball before selecting the better of the two. Players will hit their seconds from the selected tee shot and continue this process until they hole out with the score from each team counting for the hole.
Teams
Stephen Curry & Klay Thompson: Curry is likely to be the star of the show, having flashed his golf acumen on the professional level before in the Ellie Mae Classic on the Korn Ferry Tour in 2017 and 2018. The two-time MVP was the highest finisher among competitors at Lake Tahoe and will have had plenty of time to gear up for this event following the Warriors' playoff exit. What Thompson provides to the them will be interesting. He is the least skilled of the four, but the scramble format is catered towards such golfers and could play into his hands.
Patrick Mahomes & Travis Kelce: Both Mahomes and Kelce have a knack for the spotlight. Mahomes plays as a 7 handicap while his tight end checks in around an 11. Those are ideal handicaps for your member-guest and may prove to be the same in the scramble format. Typically, the team with the best individual player wins these, but the switch in the format may serve the more equal partnership better.
Picks, odds
Odds via Caesars Sportsbook
Curry/Thompson: -330 | Mahomes/Kelce: +260
Look, we are trying to dissect the golf skills of four premier athletes in the scramble format. It's ridiculous. Anything could happen. If you sided with the plus-money teams in the prior seven editions of The Match you would be up money, so if it ain't broke, don't fix it. There will be a lot of pressure on Curry to produce shots from tee to green. A well-balanced Chiefs attack will take this home 1 UP with a late field goal. Pick: Mahomes/Kelce: +260
Who will win The Match 8? And where does all the betting value lie? Visit SportsLine right now to see who you can bank on to win, all from the expert that's nailed nine golf majors!
