The Match has become an annual fixture on golf fan's calendars, alongside the biggest PGA Tour tournaments and the four major golf tournaments. 2024 is not going to be breaking that tradition, as details for The Match 2024 have been announced, with this year's marking a first for the event: a singles event made up of four of the best men and women's golfers in the world.
What has made The Match (or, as it is officially known, Capital One's The Match) such a fun event since its inception in the early days of the pandemic is it takes golfers closer to the action than ever before with the golfers mic'd up, features fantastic commentary, including Charles Barkley ribbing the participants (and them back to him) and a general sense of fun as the big winner are the charities that The Match raises money for.
After a few years of bringing in athletes in from other sports to take part in the friendly competition, The Match 2024 is turning back to the pros, as two of the top golfers on the PGA Tour and two from the LPGA Tour are squaring off in a prime-time showcase.
We've got everything that you need to know about The Match 2024 right here.
The Match 2024 date
The Match 2024 is set to take place on Monday, February 26, at 6:30 pm ET/3:30 pm PT.
The Match 2023 channel
The Match is going to air on TNT in the US, with simulcasts on truTV and HLN, as well as a live stream on Max.
If you're interested in additional supporting content, the Bleacher Report app has expansive coverage plans leading up to and during The Match.
Right now we don't have definitive info on where The Match 2024 is going to be available to watch in the UK, but past iterations have been available on Discovery Plus.
The Match 2024 golfers
The golf pros are back headlining The Match 2024, as Max Homa, Rory McIlroy, Lexi Thompson and Rose Zhang are participating in this year's event.
Max Homa has been a rising player on the PGA Tour over the last few years. He has won six times on the PGA Tour, including twice in 2023, and was a part of the US Ryder Cup team in 2023. Per the official World Golf Ranking (WGR), Homa is the seventh ranked player in the world.
McIlroy is one of the best and most recognizable golfers in the world. He is a four-time major winner and 38 total wins in his career, including most recently the Hero Dubai Desert Classic in January. Currently, McIlroy is the second best player in the world, according to the WGR. Even casual golf fans know McIlroy, if nothing else than from his prominent role in Full Swing season 1 (and likely soon Full Swing season 2).
Lexi Thompson has long been a standout on the LPGA Tour, having earned 11 tournament wins in her career, including one major title. She's also competed in six Solheim Cups, which is the women's golf equivalent to the Ryder Cup. Thompson also has participated in PGA Tour events, becoming the seventh woman to play on the tour when she competed at the Shriners Children's Open in October 2023; unfortunately she did not make the cut at the tournament.
Rounding things out is Rose Zhang. After a historic amateur career that saw her win two NCAA Women's Golf Championships, back-to-back ANNIKA Awards (given to the top women college golfer), the 2023 Augusta National Women's Amateur, spent 141 weeks as the top-ranked amateur player in the world and broke Tiger Woods' record at Stanford for most wins in school history, Zhang turned pro in May 2023. She then won her first professional tournament in June.
Charles Barkley commentary
One consistent presence at The Match has been NBA and broadcasting legend Charles Barkley providing commentary. Barkley is an avid golf fan and infamously bad golfer. In fact, one version of The Match paired him and Phil Mickelson against Peyton Manning and Seth Curry; Manning and Curry were actually favored over pro golfer Mickelson because of Barkley's reputation, but Sir Charles and Lefty won.
Barkley is set to return as a commentator for The Match, alongside his Inside the NBA host Ernie Johnson, who serves as host, Masters champion Trevor Immelman as an analyst, Kathryn Tappen as the course reporter and, making her debut on The Match, three-time LPGA Tour winner and golfing personality Christina Kim.
In addition, Grammy-winner DJ Khaled and NHL on TNT personality Paul Bissonnette are going to be a part of the broadcast, following the players on the course.
How to watch The Match 2024
TNT is the traditional TV home for The Match 2024, though you can also see the event simulcasted on truTV and HLN. This means that your viewing options include traditional pay-TV services that carry TNT, truTV and HLN or live TV streaming services that feature the cable network as part of their channel lineup, which includes Hulu with Live TV, Sling TV and YouTube TV.
For the first time, the Max streaming service is also going to live stream the event. The event is taking place while Max is still offering its free trial its B/R Sports Add-On, which means all Max subscribers can stream this and other sporting events at no extra cost. That free-trial ends on February 29, at which point having the ability to stream live sports on Max is going to cost an additional $9.99 per month.
If you’re looking for some additional coverage, the sports app Bleacher Report is going to have extensive coverage leading up to The Match 2024 on its platform. All you need to access that is download the Bleacher Report app.
Where is The Match 2024?
The Match 2024 is being played at The Park golf course in West Palm Beach, Fla.
The Park opened in April 2023, reimagined from the former West Palm Beach Country Club. Designed by Gil Hanse, the course is dedicated to youth programs and community outreach to promote the game for golfers of all skill levels.
With The Match taking place in Florida in February and a start time of 6:30 pm ET, that means it will take place mostly under the lights. This is the second time The Match has played night golf, following Jordan Spieth/Justin Thomas vs Tiger Woods/Rory McIlroy in 2022.
The Match 2024 format
The Match has traditionally been a team event, but for the first time The Match 2024 is going to be a mixed skins format that sees the players competing as individuals.
Each hole throughout the 12-hole event will be worth a specified amount for charity. Whichever golfer scores the best on a given hole will that hole. The winner of the event will be based on who won the most money for charity over the course of the four holes.
All four golfers will use the same tees for the four par 3s featured in the event. The other eight holes (par 4s and 5s) will see them using varying tee boxes and yardages for the men and women.
Here are the amounts that each hole will be worth during the match:
- Holes 1-4: $100,000 each
- Holes 5-8: $150,000 each
- Holes 9-11: $200,000 each
- Hole 12: $500,000
And here are the special challenges that the golfers will participate in to raise more money for charity:
- Hole 3: PODS Closest to the Hole
- Hole 5: DraftKings Sportsbook Closest to the Hole
- Hole 8: Kohl's Closest to the Hole
- Hole 11: Golf Digest Closest to the Hole
The Match charity
The Match's primary goal besides entertainment is to raise funds for charity. For The Match 2024, the charity that they are supporting is First Tee.
First Tee is a youth organization with the mission to help make golf affordable and accessible to all kids, while also providing them with other opportunities and resources for a successful life.
Over its history, Capital One's The Match says that is has raised more than $38 million for various charities.
The Match winners
Here are the winners (in bold) of the previous editions of The Match:
- Match 1: Tiger vs Phil — Phil Mickelson
- Match 2: Tiger Woods/Peyton Manning vs Phil Mickelson/Tom Brady — Woods/Manning
- Match 3: Phil Mickleson/Charles Barkley vs Steph Curry/Peyton Manning — Mickelson/Barkley
- Match 4: Bryson DeChambeau/Aaron Rodgers vs Phil Mickelson/Tom Brady — DeChambeau/Rodgers
- Match 5: Bryson DeChanbeau vs Brooks Koepka — Bryson DeChambeau
- Match 6: Tom Brady/Aaron Rodgers vs Josh Allen/Patrick Mathomes — Brady/Rodgers
- Match 7: Jordan Spieth/Justin Thomas vs Tiger Woods/Rory McIlroy — Spieth/Thomas
- Match 8: Steph Curry/Klay Thompson vs Patrick Mahomes/Travis Kelce — Mahome/Kelce
