Patrick Mahomes leans on Texas teachers before taking on Brady, Rodgers in 'The Match'
You know Patrick Mahomes for his supreme athleticism on the gridiron, one that combines the ability to maneuver in and out of trouble with arm angles that give defenses fits.
The former Texas Tech star is hoping to use some of the same principles in an upcoming made-for-TV sporting event, and he’s counted on the coaching from a fellow Texan to offer some guidance.
The Kansas City Chiefs star is pairing up with Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen in an upcoming installment of The Match to be played on June 1 on TNT at the Wynn Golf Club in Las Vegas.
With the same intensity that he trains for a National Football League season, Mahomes is working hard on his golf game in advance of the big matchup with Tom Brady and Aaron Rodgers.
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And he’s been leaning on former PGA Tour player and 1998 U.S. Amateur champ Hank Kuehne for mentoring along the way. Mahomes has been playing golf with Kuehne and his brother (three-time Walker Cup participant Trip Kuehne) for some time now and previously used a few of the siblings’ pointers while preparing for the American Century Championship, a celebrity golf tournament played in Lake Tahoe.
With the upcoming TV event nearing, he went back to the brothers for more help.
“I always would play with them and they kind of just give me some tips,” Mahomes said Tuesday. “And so going into Tahoe last year, they gave me a few tips on putting and it helped me out a lot. And so we went out and they helped me out with my driver because if you've seen me in Tahoe before — I only use three wood, I never used the driver and this offseason is the first time I've been consistently using my driver well.”
Rodgers and Brady have more experience in this setting — each has been part of a previous installment of The Match — but the smack talk is already in full swing between the two sides as they prepare for the event. For example, when asked if Brady would have much to say, Allen insisted his reservoir of material would run dry.
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“I think once Tom’s script from his team runs out of jokes, I don't think he's gonna be able to really think on his feet,” Allen said with a smile. ”I feel like I've got a lot of practice and just kind of wit and off-the-cuff stuff.
“I think Aaron’s a little better in that aspect. But yeah, Tom's gonna have a little note card out there and he's gonna run out eventually and I don't think he's gonna know what to do.”
Texas Tech’s Ludvig Aberg wins Ben Hogan Award
Texas Tech’s Ludvig Aberg will compete for a national title later this week, but he’s already got some hardware for his stellar season.
The junior from Sweden won the 2022 Ben Hogan Award presented by PNC Bank, which annually honors the best men’s college golfer based on collegiate, amateur and professional events over the last 12 months. Aberg is the first-ever winner from Texas Tech and the third from the Big 12 Conference over the last five years, joining Viktor Hovland (Oklahoma State, 2019) and Doug Ghim (Texas, 2018). The award also earns Aberg an exemption into the PGA Tour’s 2023 Charles Schwab Challenge.
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Aberg recently won the Big 12 Championship, tied for sixth at the NCAA New Haven Regional and will compete at the NCAA Championship this week at Grayhawk Golf Club in Scottsdale, Ariz. The Swede also has a runner-up at the 2021 European Amateur under his belt, along with a T-30 at the DP World Tour’s Scandinavian Mixed and a 51st place finish at the PGA Tour 2021 Butterfield Bermuda Championship.
Aberg received the award at an event at Colonial Country Club alongside fellow finalists Sam Bennett (Texas A&M) and Eugenio Chacarra (Oklahoma State).
Jason Kokrak loves truck from Colonial win
Holding off Jordan Spieth and his loud, doting galleries down the stretch to win the Charles Schwab Challenge last year at Colonial Country Club was a sterling achievement in Jason Kokrak’s career.
Receiving the seven-figure check and sizeable trophy felt great, too.
The red plaid jacket that goes to the winner fit perfectly, as well.
Yet another perk Kokrak received after winning his second of three career PGA Tour titles puts a smile on his face whenever he sees or thinks about it.
A renovated, light blue 1946 Dodge Power Wagon.
“I do drive it quite a bit,” Kokrak said Tuesday at Colonial before beginning a defense of his title Thursday in Fort Worth. “I’ve probably got about 550 miles on it now.
“Picked my son up from school in it the day I left for the Byron Nelson, so driving up to the school, they knew I was coming. They didn’t know I was going to do it and drive the truck, but they were like, I can hear you coming in that thing.
“It’s pretty funny, people will stop in like the middle of the road when I’m stopped at a stop sign and take pictures of it, and you get the thumbs up all the time from the road crews and whoever is watching.”
The road isn’t the only place the truck has appeared.
“It’s been a really fun thing,” Kokrak said. “Our Christmas card with me and my family was all based around the truck, and it was in the pictures there. Something that I’ll remember forever.”
Tim Schmitt is the managing editor for Golfweek, golf coordinator for the USA Today Network and lives in Round Rock. Golfweek’s Adam Woodard also contributed to this report.
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Patrick Mahomes ready for Brady, Rodgers in advance of The Match
