HOBE SOUND, FLORIDA - MAY 23: NFL player Tom Brady of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers talks to Tiger Woods during a practice round for The Match: Champions For Charity at Medalist Golf Club on May 23, 2020 in Hobe Sound, Florida.
(Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images for The Match)

When Tiger Woods and Peyton Manning tee off against Phil Mickelson and Tom Brady, the stakes will be higher than your average exhibition.

For the last two months, sports fans have been left out in the cold by the coronavirus pandemic, but there’s hope on the horizon. The NHL and NBA are inching closer and closer to resuming play. Additionally, live sports are already returning in the form of UFC events, NASCAR, Bundesliga, and golf.

“The Match: Champions For Charity” is just a charity exhibition, but it offers sports fans plenty to care about. Even golf haters can find reasons to get excited about this event on Sunday (TNT, 3 p.m. ET). After all, the star-studded foursome contains some of the biggest names in sports.

Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson are all-time great golfers who transcend the sport itself. Peyton Manning and Tom Brady, their respective partners, are two of the best quarterbacks in NFL history.

But once we move past the big names, there are still a lot on the line for the average fan.

Free bets

“The Match” is a great opportunity for bettors to wager on live sports again. Fans can bet on their favorite pairing to win straight up, but there are also dozens of prop bets as well. DraftKings Sportsbook is making it easy for fans to make wagers on “The Match”

Sign up for DraftKings Sportsbook to secure $1,000 in free wagers and grab a free $20 bet on Tiger vs. Phil by clicking right here.

If a charity golf match doesn’t quite move the needle for you, throwing $20 down might help pique your interest. If not $20, the FoxBet Promo of a $10 bet winning $1,000 should make each hole interesting.

Free beer?

Who doesn’t love free stuff? Michelob ULTRA is giving fans the chance at a free six-pack if anyone hits a hole-in-one. So if you’re trying to figure out who to root for on Sunday, just root for a hole-in-one and some free beer.

There should be ample opportunities for the foursome to hole it at the Medalist Golf Club. There are four par-threes on the course and one par-four that is drivable. Even with Tiger and Phil, the chances of a hole-in-one are low, but it can’t hurt to dream about that free six-pack, can it?

“The Match represents a special moment for our national community as it reintroduces the joy of watching live sports from our homes, all while bringing together some of the world’s greatest athletes for a charitable cause,” said Ricardo Marques, Vice President, Michelob ULTRA. “We believe that golf is best enjoyed with a beer in hand, which is why we’re excited to help fans celebrate this moment in sports history.”

For fans who are over 21, the details for redeeming your free six-pack can be found here.

Free preview

We still don’t know what live coverage is going to be like when sports return. “The Match” is going to offer a free preview into how networks could tweak the coverage in a world without fans in the stands.

Of course, the way golf is covered is already different than major team sports like football, basketball, and baseball. But make no mistake, TV networks and professional leagues are going to be watching to see what works.

Eventually, fans are going to be back in the stands and lining the fairways, but for a little while longer, things are going to be different.

Commercial content writer for Sportradar. Never had the makings of a varsity athlete.