You know Charles Barkley is a golf nut but maybe even moreso after hearing about his last 24 hours.
The TV analyst was in the TNT studio till 2 a.m. early Wednesday morning after the NBA’s playoff games the night before.
With his alarm set for 6 a.m., Barkley crashed in his Atlanta hotel for just a bit before catching a 7 a.m. flight to Birmingham, Alabama, for a round of golf.
“I was too scared to go to bed,” he said before his round, “so I just sit in a chair for three hours.”
It wasn’t just any golf, however, on Wednesday. Barkley was set to appear in the pro-am ahead of the Regions Tradition, a major on the PGA Tour Champions this week (yes, the Champions major is the same week as the PGA Championship but that’s a story for another time). Barkley’s group was Stewart Cink and former Alabama coach and now ESPN analyst/TV pitchman Nick Saban.
“I would only do this for Alabama,” he said of his home state. “Leeds [his hometown] means a lot to me. Auburn means a lot to me. The state of Alabama means a lot to me, but it’s a long day. Tomorrow’s going to be a great day. I’m going to sleep until I wake up.”
So why does Barkley play golf?
“It’s one of the few sports you can play when you get older,” he said. “I’m not stupid enough to play Pickleball.”
After the pro-am, Barkley flew back to Atlanta, where he’ll be back alongside the Inside the NBA crew on TNT, which has a playoff double-header Wednesday night.
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