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The Match Preview: Phil Mickelson and Charles Barkley

By Tim Letcher

LAKE TAHOE, NEVADA - JULY 10: Former NBA athlete and current television analyst Charles Barkley chips up to the first green during round one of the American Century Championship at Edgewood Tahoe South golf course on July 10, 2020 in Lake Tahoe, Nevada. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
LAKE TAHOE, NEVADA - JULY 10: Former NBA athlete and current television analyst Charles Barkley chips up to the first green during round one of the American Century Championship at Edgewood Tahoe South golf course on July 10, 2020 in Lake Tahoe, Nevada. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) /
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Phil Mickelson and Charles Barkley face off against Peyton Manning and Steph Curry the day after Thanksgiving in The Match: Champions for Change.

The dessert after this year’s Thanksgiving meal, at least for golf fans, will take place on Friday at 3 p.m. ET when Phil Mickelson and Charles Barkley take on Stephen Curry and Peyton Manning in The Match: Champions for Change.

In this article, we break down the Mickelson-Barkley pairing. And what a unique pairing it is.

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Mickelson is one of the more accomplished golfers in the history of the game. He made a name for himself while still an amateur at Arizona State, when he won the Northern Telecom Open on the PGA Tour as an amateur.

Lefty has won 53 professional tournaments, including 44 on the PGA Tour. That haul includes five major championship titles. He won the Masters in 2004, 2006 and 2010. Mickelson won the PGA Championship in 2005 and he won the Open Championship in 2013. He has never won the U.S. Open, but has been runner-up there on a heartbreaking six occasions.

His recent results have not been great, although Mickelson has already won twice on the PGA Tour Champions in just two starts. He won the Charles Schwab Series at Ozarks National in August and at the Dominion Energy Charity Classic in October.

Barkley made his name in the world of basketball. He was an All-American at Auburn and was drafted fifth overall in the NBA Draft in 1984.

In the NBA, Barkley was the league MVP in 1993 and was a member of the legendary Dream Team, which led the United States to the Olympic gold medal at the 1992 Barcelona Olympic Games.

Barkley was a member of the NBA’s 50th Anniversary All-Time Team, was an 11-time all-star and was the All-Star Game MVP in 1991. He scored 23,757 points in his career and is in the Basketball Hall of Fame.

His golf game, on the other hand, is legendary for other reasons.

Let’s face it – Barkley has one of the worst golf swings in the history of the game. To call what he has a hitch in his swing is offensive to hitches in swings. Barkley has a full stop in the middle of his swing, one that generally ends with him hitting some type of errant shot.

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This duo faces an uphill challenge because in the modified alternate shot match play format, Barkley is going to have to hit every other shot. So no matter how good Mickelson is, Barkley can still screw it up for the team.

While Barkley is not a great golfer, he is a great talker and having him on the course will be a lot of fun. Look for Barkley to provide more comic relief than help to Mickelson in Friday’s match.

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