5 takeaways from The Match 7: Rory/Tiger vs. Thomas/Spieth

In terms of golfing star power, Saturday night's seventh version of The Match in Tampa, Florida, was about as good as it gets.

The star-studded duo of Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy faced off against the dominant American team of Justin Thomas and Jordan Spieth in a 12-hole better-ball exhibition to raise money for hurricane relief.

The event started at 7:00 p.m. local time, with floodlights providing an incredible backdrop for the entire match.

Thomas and Spieth got up early and didn't look back, taking a 3-up lead after four holes before closing out Woods and McIlroy 3-and-2 on the 10th.

Overall, it was an incredible night of golf and entertainment and will hopefully lead to more action featuring the game's best players under the lights.

Here are five takeaways from the night in Tampa.

More golf at night, please

Night golf with shot tracer is a game-changer that the golf world needs to embrace on a bigger scale. The scenes with the dark backdrop around Pelican Golf Club were amazing on Saturday, as the floodlights supplied the only light required throughout.

Playing under the lights certainly doesn't make it easier on the players - the greens are often tricky to read with freshening dew and shadows in putting lines - but the scenes are more than worth the drop in quality. While a regular PGA TOUR event under the lights would be very tricky to pull off due to logistics, the exhibition series played in prime time is an incredible sight.

Tiger still has speed

The 15-time major champion's appearance in The Match was his first competitive action since The Open in July, so it was fair to expect some rust from him. One area Woods didn't lack was in ball speed, as the 46-year-old had plenty of power on the driver all night. His first swing on the range hit 182 miles per hour - a number that would rank 18th this season on the PGA TOUR - 10 mph over the average among pros. It was definitely a positive sign.

Woods' ball speed was routinely in the upper 170s throughout the night, well above the TOUR average and north of Spieth and Thomas on most holes.

After plantar fasciitis in his foot forced him to withdraw from last week's Hero World Challenge, it was incredibly encouraging to witness Woods still crank up the ball speed despite walking with a noticeable limp throughout the night.

The one-club challenge rules

The players stepped on the tee at the 455-yard par-4 fourth at Pelican Golf Club, challenged to use just one club for the entire hole - and it couldn't be the same club as another player. Thomas and Spieth got first dibs, choosing a 5-wood and a 4-iron, respectively. McIlroy opted for a 3-iron, and Woods closed out the choices by selecting a 5-iron.

The shotmaking on the hole was outstanding theater, as all four players attempted things they would never hit in a regular tournament. Woods got things started with an outrageous slinging hook off the tee to try and max out his distance, but Thomas ended up showing off the best touch. After a soft hook with his 5-wood flew the green on his approach, Thomas played a remarkable shot - under a cable held by Spieth, no less - to secure a par and win the hole for his team.

The one-club challenge proved just how talented these guys are when using their creativity, and it should be a staple of any exhibition match going forward.

Charles Barkley is key

As important as the big names are to attract maximum attention to The Match, Charles Barkley might be the key to the whole franchise. The lovable NBA on TNT broadcaster once again provided comedic relief throughout the proceedings, with his back-and-forth banter with Thomas stealing the show.

It started early when Barkley asked the newly-married Thomas about his wedding.

There is some playful history between the two from previous editions of The Match, most notably the second one when Thomas served as an on-course reporter and repeatedly popped Barkley for his love of eating. That continued on Saturday, with Thomas getting in multiple cracks at Barkley's expense.

Barkley, an Auburn alum, got back at Thomas for his beloved Alabama failing to make the College Football Playoff, while also poking fun at McIlroy and Woods after they fell behind 3-down.

"We gotta get this thing to 12 holes. TNT has about 795 commercials to show," Barkley said.

There's nobody else in broadcasting like Barkley, and his timing and sense of humor perfectly fill the dead air between shots on the telecast. After inking a new deal with TNT recently, the 59-year-old should continue to be heavily involved in The Match for years to come.

JT, Spieth remain golf's greatest team

Saturday offered another glimpse at why Spieth and Thomas are the best team in golf. The long-time friends sport a remarkable 8-2-0 record as a duo in team events and flashed plenty of that chemistry against Woods and McIlroy.

Thomas' wife must have done the heavy lifting in the wedding planning because the World No. 8 doesn't appear to have missed any practice time in the last month. The two-time major winner was clearly the best golfer of the night, repeatedly scaring the flag stick with his approaches and draining clutch putts time and again - much to his partner's delight.

Thomas largely carried the pair, but Spieth offered up some of his usual shot-making brilliance, setting up the match-clinching birdie with an incredible approach from the pine straw on the 10th hole.