TNT Sports’ ‘The Match’ Superstars: Which Celebrity Has the Edge?

Golf enthusiasts don’t typically have a lot to track in late November. However, TNT Sports’ The Match: Superstars is set to provide fans with an entertaining two-day event on Thursday and Friday.

While the latest iteration of The Match won’t be a large-field tournament featuring the world’s best professional golfers, it will carry substantial stakes. A top prize of $1 million will be awarded to the winner.

The event will also offer fans some unique insight into the golfing habits of some big-time celebrities—most likely served with a healthy portion of friendly banter and trash talk.

“TNT Sports will deploy a number of technological innovations throughout the taped production that elevate the fan experience, including the Sports Emmy-nominated Cart Cam, drone cameras, and unprecedented access with participating players interacting with one another and the broadcast team via open mics throughout the course.”

With an eight-player field headlined by stars like actor Bill Murray, NBA Hall of Famer Charles Barkley and MLB legend Ken Griffey Jr., the two-night event should provide plenty of fun moments.

Who has the edge heading into this three-round competition? Let’s take a look.

The Match: Superstars

Where: Breakers West Country Club in West Palm Beach

When: November 21 and 22

Time: 7:30 p.m. ET on both nights

TV and Live Stream: TNT and Max

The Field

The format of The Match: Superstars may play a big role in how things unfold. In Thursday’s round, two matches involving two-player teams will decide who participates in the semifinals.

Murray and NHL hall of famer Wayne Gretzky will go against Barkley and Griffey in Round 1. Meanwhile, actor Mark Wahlberg and 23-time Olympic medalist Michael Phelps will face six-time NBA All-Star Blake Griffin and comedian Nate Bargatze.

The format for the twosome round will be scramble. For those unfamiliar, scramble is a format in which each player on a team tees off individually, decides on the best lie for the next shot and then hits from that spot.

Teammates continue hitting their own shots from a shared position until the ball is holed. This variant allows for some creativity and risk-taking, more so than most formats. If Player A hits a quality lay-up shot, player B can try threading the needle through hazards to try to find the green. Whichever lie is best is the one the team will use.

As is the case in best-ball formats—which involve wholly individual play with teams taking the lowest score on each hole—scramble can allow a superior golfer to carry his teammate.

The prediction here is that Phelps will carry Wahlberg against Griffin and Bargatze, competitors who each participated in this year’s American Century Championship.

The team of Barkley and Griffey may also be tough to beat. Barkley has competed in The Match before—winning The Match III alongside Phil Mickelson—while Griffey has earned a bit of a reputation as a power hitter.

Between Barkley’s experience and Griffey’s smooth swing, Murray and Gretzky will face a difficult challenge.

Thursday’s winning teams will be split for Friday’s semifinal and final rounds of individual match play.

Barkley’s experience in The Match—both as a competitor and a member of the commentary team—should give him an edge on Friday. However, the biggest edge probably goes to Phelps.

The decorated Olympic legend is an incredible athlete who has also dedicated himself to golf recently. As he explained earlier this year, the 39-year-old is driven to become a scratch golfer.

“I know that to get to a scratch golfer, that’s going to take time. It’s going to take practice,” Phelps said in January,
per Josh Berhow of Golf.com.

“It’s going to take a lot of energy. And that’s something that I’m excited to do, because that’s what I did in order to accomplish the goals that I did in the sport of swimming.”

When a world-class athlete combines their talents with the dedication of an Olympic champion, success is almost sure to follow. Expect Phelps to shine throughout the two-day event while reminding the world just what kind of competitor he is.