"Keep it simple, stupid:" NFL stars reveal how golf helps them with football ahead of Super Bowl game

Many athletes and celebrities enjoy playing golf, including NFL stars Saquon Barkley and Patrick Mahomes. Ahead of their Superbowl clash on Sunday, the two talked about their love for golf in a press conference.

Philadelphia Eagles running back, Saquon Barkley, discussed the things he had learned from golf and applied to his football game.

"K-I-S-S, keep it simple, stupid. Don't try to do too much. Sometimes as a running back, you can allow your eyes to get messy, to get sloppy. So I think that's my biggest thing and then I would say real vs feel. There will be times that I will feel something while I am running the ball, the same way how you feel on a golf shot,"

While he admitted he was not a great golfer, Barkley further discussed his "two takes".

"I am talking like I really know what I am talking about. I am like a 15 handicap by the way. It sounds great but--just using that while I am running. How I get to lock in my core. How I get to firing my legs when I am running. Feel vs real. Those would be my two takes,"

Kansas City Chiefs quarterback, Patrick Mahomes, is an avid golfer. He has a handicap of 7.7 (according to golf.com) and has competed in two editions of the 'The Match'. The 29-year-old talked about why he loved golf so much.

"You know, honestly that's why I love golf so much. It's always different. There's always an opportunity to save a shot or an opportunity to go out there and take advantage of a golf hole,"

He further detailed how certain difficult situations can arise in both golf and football, and how golf has taught him that one can always find a way out.

"Just like playing football or playing the quarterback position especially you might have a bad throw, you might have an interception, but how do you respond to that next one? And I feel like golf is the same way. I might hit a slice or I might hook one. But can I still get up-and-down or can I still find a way to get par. And that's why I like golf so much, man, because it's always different, it's always a challenge I am willing to go out there and accept."

Kansas City Chiefs will be fighting for their third consecutive Superbowl title at New Orleans on Sunday against the Philadelphia Eagles. The latter had lost to the Chiefs at the Superbowl in 2023.

---

How many NFL stars have played in the exhibition golf contest 'The Match'?

Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce (Source: Getty)

While, 'The Match' had started with a Tiger Woods vs Phil Mickelson bout, several other athletes partook in the contest over the years. So far, Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, Aaron Rodgers, Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen and Travis Kelce have all appeared on 'The Match'.

In 2020, Tiger Woods and Peyton Manning triumphed over Phil Mickelson and Tom Brady. In November that year, Manning paired up with NBA icon Steph Curry but lost to Mickelson and Charles Barkley. In 2021, Mickelson and Brady again teamed up to go against Bryson DeChambeau and Aaron Rodgers. The latter won the match.

In an all-NFL edition in 2022, Brady and Rodgers defeated Patrick Mahomes and Josh Allen. Mahomes returned to 'The Match' in 2023 to take on NBA duo Curry and Klay Thompson along with his Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce. The NFL team won the fixture.