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Tom Brady hopes Charles Barkley comes out swinging with trash talk at The Match

Tom Brady has stepped up his golf game ahead of the latest edition of The Match this week, and he has Charles Barkley to thank for it.

After hearing the former NBA star rip his game both at the last version of The Match that he played in and last week, Brady knew he had to get it together.

After all, do you really want Barkley of all people bashing your golf game?

“I hope he starts talking trash on the practice range, because that definitely lit a fire under me,” Brady said Monday, via GolfDigest. “Any time your golf swing gets insulted by Charles, you gotta take that to heart. I had a lot of insults, this was probably one of the worst insults I could imagine: Charles Barkley insulting my golf swing.”

Barkley went off on Brady on "The Dan Patrick Show" last week, too.

“I like to bash him because he’s got a great sense of humor, but I don’t think Tom can beat me in golf,” he said. “I really don’t. Not right now he can’t.”

Now, in Barkley’s defense, his golf swing is a lot better now. While it may not be great, it’s at least normal — which is significantly improved.

Brady has shut Barkley up on the golf course before — including at the second edition of The Match, when Brady teamed up with Phil Mickelson. After a brutal start in the rain, and ripping his pants, Brady drained a wild approach shot from the middle of the fairway and immediately pointed at Barkley.

“Shut your mouth, Chuck,” Brady said. “Take a little of that medicine.”

Either way, Brady will have a shot to defend his game yet again to Barkley in person. Barkley will be on the call for The Match on Tuesday when Brady and Mickelson team up to take on Bryson DeChambeau and Aaron Rodgers in Montana.

While the event could go any number of ways, both Brady and Mickelson know one thing is for certain: The trash talking is just getting started.

“The smack talk will be coming in on a high because Charles is coming in hot,” Mickelson said, via GolfDigest. “But you know what, I don’t think anybody can shut [Barkley] up like Tom can shut him up.”

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