Travis Kelce Finally Addresses His Viral Golf Outfit From The Match

Travis Kelce is a man of many talents. Besides being a generational talent capable of revolutionizing the tight end position, the Kansas City Chiefs star is pretty comfortable on the golf course. Earlier this summer, he and Patrick Mahomes joined forces for the 2023 edition of The Match, defeating Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson.

And while there were some impressive shots on the day, Kelce's all-knit outfit, rather than his on-course abilities, stole the spotlight. Questions started to emerge. What was the tight end thinking? Was he really going to golf in that? Why does athletic attire need so many pockets?

Well, nearly three months later, we have a bit more insight. During a podcast appearance, Kelce touched on his outfit and one less-than-ideal consequence of wearing knitted gear in Las Vegas.

Let's hear from the man himself.

Kelce's golf gear caused quite a stir online

By and large, golfers tend to wear fairly standard outfits when they're hitting the course. Travis Kelce, however, doesn't really seem like a Polo shirt and slacks sort of guy.

As mentioned above, the Chiefs star hit the links that day wearing some knitted Nike gear. That sartorial choice caused quite a stir on social media, with outlets like Golf Digest inviting viewers to share their thoughts.

Needless to say, there were plenty of critical responses.

Elsewhere, Odds Shark spoke for the masses by wondering if the Chief was actually going to play in that outfit.

Months later, Kelce addressed the consequences of his choice

On August 24, Travis Kelce appeared on the Hidden Pearls podcast alongside George Kittle. While the tight end position framed much of the conversation, there was still a bit of time to talk golf.

"We [Patrick Mahomes and I] teamed up, we teamed up. It was a scramble format, so it was a real, like, golf, team golf-type effort," No. 87 remembered. "Me and Pat were ham-and-egging it. Whenever he hit a bad shot, I hit a good one. Whenever I hit a bad shot, he hit a good one. It was kinda like we were trading off all the good shots there, and, yeah, we got after the Splash Bros."

Kittle then asked if it was hot in Las Vegas and how that meshed with an all-knit outfit, which prompted Kelce to revisit his choice.

"It was steamy," the two-time Super Bowl champion explained. "I had the booty sweat going, man. It was bad. It was real bad. The wrong choice, but it was still, you know what? When you look good, you play good, baby....Feel good, everything's going."

Kelce also credited Andy Reid for encouraging him to be himself

From afar, it's easy to look at Travis Kelce—whether he's wearing an unusual outfit or taking a shot at the mayor of Cincinnati—and raise an eyebrow and wonder what the Chiefs organization makes of his choices. And while it's not a blank check to go completely rogue, the tight end explained how Andy Reid wants everyone to show their personalities.

Later in the podcast, the Cincinnati product remembered how his perspective changed since entering the league.

"I feel like my first couple of years, man, I would take everything so darn serious," Kelce said. "I would take everything serious. I would take, you know, I'm the point of attack, and I didn't get my leverage, and we still gained three to four yards like we want to, but I could have, if I would have sealed them, we could have been out the gate, you know? And that would just mentally just be like [punches his hand with his fist], 'Not accountable. I suck.' You know? And that's how I watched the film. I'd do that and I would come into practice and just be like, 'Man, I gotta get better. Man, I gotta get better.' And I wasn't really like showing my personality. I wasn't like being me."

That's where Big Red stepped in.

"And that's his number one thing," Kelce said of his coach. "If you're gonna play for Coach Reid, showing your personality is the first thing that he's going to tell you to do. You have to enjoy coming in to work and enjoy the fact that we get to play a game for a living, that we get to be out here making, you know, a ridiculous amount of money having fun on the football field. Playing in the grass every day. So, showing your personality and just enjoying what you're doing no matter what it is in life. I'm gonna take that with me, and then when you screw up, don't take it so seriously. But kinda take it real serious."

While that may sound like a bunch of fluffy platitudes, you can connect that philosophy to the way Kelce, Mahomes and the rest of the Chiefs play. Kansas City has found success with trick plays, unconventional looks—like Kelce as a wildcat quarterback and Mahomes throwing no-look passes—and unbridled creativity. Sure, every coach wants to win, but Andy Reid is willing to push beyond old-school football culture to help get his team over the hump.

Does that mean that sub-.500 teams should start wearing wacky outfits and goofing around on game day? No, but No. 87's growth does speak to the validity of Reid's methods.

So, whether he's celebrating a touchdown, wearing an all-knit outfit on the golf course, or doing anything in between, Travis Kelce isn't changing who he is. And that has helped make him an unbridled success.