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With Phil Mickelson serving as the common denominator for the first several versions of The Match franchise but seemingly in golf exile over comments regarding the Saudi Arabia-backed Super League a few months ago, the quarterbacks are taking over the franchise. It will be old guard vs. new guard on June 1 at the Wynn Golf Club in Las Vegas as Tom Brady and Aaron Rodgers pair up against Patrick Mahomes and Josh Allen.

Brady and Rodgers are not new to The Match. Brady teamed with Mickelson in the second edition of the event back in 2020 against Peyton Manning and Tiger Woods. They teamed up again last year against Bryson DeChambeau and Aaron Rodgers in Montana. Brady's team lost both events.

Rodgers, who is probably the best pure golfer out of this group, has appeared at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro Am in the past. Mahomes and Allen are relatively new to the televised golf circuit, though Mahomes has been a fixture at the American Century Celebrity Golf Championship at Lake Tahoe, and Allen teamed up with Keith Mitchell this year at Pebble Beach.

When The Match was first held on Thanksgiving in 2019, it seemed as if it would be an event centered around Woods vs. Mickelson. Even when other celebrity athletes like Stephen Curry, Charles Barkley and a variety of QBs were added to the mix, the allure of 21 major championships from Woods and Mickelson carried the day.

However, last Thanksgiving, the first iteration without Woods or Mickelson took place when DeChambeau and Brooks Koepka squared off. Mickelson was on the broadcast for that one, though, and it still felt like the day was about him given his commentary throughout the event.

So, it will be interesting to see how this one goes.

The Match has been both an entertainment and seemingly an economic success. According to Golf Digest, the event has raised over $33 million for charity, but again, this will be the first one without a multi-time major champion. That could actually be a benefit the competition aspect as these four quarterbacks are similarly talented. They are also extraordinarily popular and will certainly draw a massive audience.

I'm excited for the festivities and hopeful the razzing extends beyond golf and gets more personal with Mahomes taking shots at Brady for unretiring or Brady asking Rodgers and Allen if they remember when the Super Bowl takes place. Even without Mickelson or Woods, the Match should and probably will thrive into the future.

This version will be a nice test case to see if it can carry its weight without a professional golfer in the mix. If so, the possibilities for the future are endless.