Which NFL players deserve a Masters invite? Ranking league's best golfers
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Chase and Higgins or Brown and Smith: Which duo would you rather have?
The Eagles got AJ Brown and DeVonta Smith for $100m less than the Bengals got Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins
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NFL players like to stay active during the offseason. One of the hobbies players have embraced to make that happen is playing golf.
Golf serves as a way for professional football players to stay competitive during the offseason while embracing a game that comes with relatively little wear-and-tear compared to their primary profession.
It's also easy for players to get on the course. Plenty of celebrity events and Pro-Ams that exist on the golf calendar, and the NFLPA has even begun hosting an offseason golf tournament at the El Camaleon Golf Course at Mayakoba in Mexico.
This year, the NFLPA Classic was won by a team made up of former Cincinnati Bearcats turned NFL players: Sauce Gardner, Desmond Ridder, Alec Pierce and Josh Whyle.
With the Masters right around the corner, here's a look at some of the best and more notable NFL golfers both currently in the league and retired.
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Best current NFL golfers
When Rodgers isn't playing quarterback or off on a darkness retreat, he tends to find success on the golf course, playing to a 4 handicap. He and Tom Brady beat Patrick Mahomes and Josh Allen in the 2022 edition of "The Match" and has finished in the top 15 at the last three American Century Championship.
Despite developing into the 2024 NFL MVP, Allen has been able to sharpen his golf game into one of the league's best. He played to a 6 handicap at the 2023 American Century and finished a career-best tied for 20th at the event in 2024. He also paired up with Keith Mitchell at the 2024 Pebble Beach Pro-Am and rode a strong final round to a sixth-place finish.
Mahomes is another avid golfer among NFL quarterbacks and plays to a 7 handicap. However, he might be a bit better than that, as he admitted during Super Bowl 59 media day.
"I think I'll forever play as a 7," Mahomes told reporters, per Golf Digest. "I don't put my good scores in. But don't tell my buddies that."
Does that make Mahomes a bit of a sandbagger? Maybe, but it hasn't impacted him in the events he has played yet. He lost "The Match" alongside Allen in 2022 before beating Steph Curry and Klay Thompson in the 2023 iteration of the event alongside his teammate, Travis Kelce.
Thielen was a state golf champion during his high school days (2007) and had a 0.7 handicap as of 2023, per Golf.com. The Panthers wide-out has finished in the top 20 at seven consecutive American Century championships, including a career-best fourth-place finish in 2022.
Smith, a long-time member of the Vikings, rivaled his former teammate Thielen for the best finish among active NFL players at the 2024 American Century. He finished tied for 11th at the event and plays to a 1 handicap, per the Minneapolis Star-Tribune.
Like Smith, Carr also tied for 11th at the 2024 American Century. He played to a 6 handicap at the 2023 event, matching that of Allen, and has improved upon his finish in each of his four appearances in the celebrity tournament.
The Eagles kicker put his golf game on peoples' radar by posting trick shots to social media during the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic. He qualified for the Philadelphia Open in 2022 and has a handicap that has been reported anywhere between 0.6 and 3 strokes. That makes him one of the best golfers currently playing in the NFL.
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Best former NFL golfers
Tony Romo
Romo is perhaps the best-known NFL golfer. He has won the American Century Championship three times during his career and currently has a 1.5 handicap. Romo famously tried to qualify for the 2005 U.S. Open but came up short. He played four PGA Tour events and three Korn Ferry events from 2018-20, but he didn't make the cut at any.
Matt Ryan
Ryan finished 16th at the 2024 American Century. He tends to sport a handicap between 0 and 2, has competed at the Pebble Beach Pro-Am and was named one of the NFL's best golfers in 2019, per Golf.com.
Ryan Succop
Succop was noted for his accuracy during his career as an NFL kicker. He also is accurate on the golf course, as he played on a state championship golf team in high school and has maintained a solid game throughout his lifetime, playing to a 2.6 handicap.
Josh Scobee
Scobee is another former NFL kicker who has a great golf game. He played to a 1.8 handicap as of 2020 and has made some impressive shots during his career, including an albatross at the TPC Sawgrass Players Stadium course during a 2021 charity tournament.
Scobee has routinely played celebrity tournaments and has attempted to qualify for the U.S. Open to no avail. He obtained amateur status from the USGA in 2019 in the hopes of playing in more golf tournaments.
Tom Brady
Brady won "The Match" alongside Rodgers in 2022 and also competed alongside Phil Mickelson in the 2020 iteration of the event, won by Tiger Woods and Peyton Manning. Brady plays to about an 8 handicap and has often appeared in the Pebble Beach Pro-Am during his career.
Larry Fitzgerald
Fitzgerald used to play to an 8 handicap like Brady, but the former Cardinals receiver dropped his to 6 in 2024, per Golf Digest. He has won the Pebble Beach Pro-Am twice and has participated in the American Century every year since 2018, with his best finish being a solo 25th in 2020.
Patrick Peterson
Peterson, Fitzgerald's long-time teammate, has also spent his retirement focusing on his golf game. He moved his handicap into the single digits after working with legendary swing coach Butch Harmon, per Golf.com. He has competed in various pro-ams, including twice appearing at the Phoenix Open.
Brett Kern
Kern played to a 1 handicap as recently as 2019. He also caddied for three summers at Inverness Golf Club in Toledo, Ohio during his college days.
John Elway
Elway played to a 2 handicap and the 2023 American Century and finished ninth at the event. He was a staple of the event from its beginning in 1990, appearing in 27 consecutive tournaments before taking a hiatus following the 2016 event. He has finished top 10 in the event 15 times. He also attempted to qualify for the U.S. Senior Open in 2018.
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