Baker Mayfield fist-bumps a fan during the 2024 American Century Championship. Mayfield will be back in the field in 2025.
Bayer Media Group
If you’ve watched any of George Kittle’s highlights or interviews, you know he’s quite comfortable just being alongside some buddies.
Toss in a few rounds of golf near the beaches of Lake Tahoe and Kittle couldn’t resist.
“I see all the videos every year; I see all the fans. I know there's a par‑3 where all the boats are pulled up and you're getting hollered at. I'm looking forward to that,” said the San Francisco 49ers’ star tight end. “I heard you're allowed to drink beer on the course. I think you get a mulligan per beer — Baker (Mayfield) told me that before we got on (a media call) — so, hopefully I'll get a good score if that's the case.”
Kittle is still refining his golf game and anticipates plenty of anxiety when he steps up to the tee box in his first round.
There’s a solution for that, and it’s not juice boxes.
“I think Travis (Kelce) told me to have a few drinks before the first tee box so I'm not too nervous,” said Kittle.
Maybe it’s best to give George a little space on the tee box if you’re an onlooker in the practice rounds.
LONG ODDS
Mayfield, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ quarterback, can’t believe the bookies have him with longer odds to win than a beer-fueled Kittle.
“I've got to get something off my chest. I don't know how I'm 1,000‑1 and George is 250‑1,” said Mayfield.
Kittle plans on letting him hear about that very fact all weekend.
“I decided to trash talk Baker. Hopefully we get paired up at some point because I have better odds. I don't know why because it's my first time there,” Kittle said.
Who is Mayfield hoping to chirp?
“I would love to get in Sam Darnold's head,” said Mayfield. “I would like to see what Sam's like on a course with so many people out there. He's more of an introvert, so I want to ruffle his feathers a little bit.”
KITTLE TAKES TO GOLF
Kittle, a first-time ACC participant, says he bought his first set of clubs from a Play It Again Sports with a scholarship check back in Iowa.
He upgraded his bag four years ago, but since then his new additions are mainly clubs discarded by his pals.
“One of my buddies, he's like a shorter D-lineman, a lot of power,” said Kittle. “He hit like three drives in a row into the forest. He threw his club into the forest. I was, like, ‘Can I go get that?’ It was a Nike Sasquatch driver. I still have it in my bag today, still use it every single day that I golf.”
He acquired a 54-degree wedge the same way.
His entry into this year’s field stemmed from a scene he just wanted to be a part of.
“Two things. I thoroughly enjoy golf. I thoroughly enjoy having an excuse to be outside for four days for multiple hours. And then a little bit of FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out) — I just like hanging out with the boys. It's fantastic. All the interaction you get. All the people you get to meet.
“And I'm a huge fan of Lake Tahoe. Give me an excuse to go to Lake Tahoe for four days and I'll take it.”
(Matt Ryan will be another NFL quarterback in the ACC field in 2025 — albeit a retired QB — alongside current players like Baker Mayfield. / Ron Harpin)