Phil Mickelson beat Tiger Woods in overtime Friday in their $9-million pay-per-view match in Las Vegas.
Mickelson won on the 22nd hole, making a 4-foot birdie putt on a specially set up 93-yard par 3. The match at Shadow Creek Golf Club finished under floodlights.
Mickelson said to Woods after the match: ‘Just know I will never let you live that down. It’s not the Masters or the US Open, but it is nice to have a little something on you.’
Woods said he enjoyed the match, even if he was on the losing end.
‘You couldn’t have made this event any better than it was,’ he said. ‘It was back and forth and very competitive on a golf course that was playing on the tricky side.’
Only 700 invited guests were allowed to watch the event at Shadow Creek. The match was billed as a chance for viewers to watch a non-traditional golf broadcast, as both golfers and their caddies were mic’d up. It also featured live odds from MGM resorts, and a drone was used for live shots.
There was some banter between Woods and Mickelson early on, but not much more as the stakes increased.
Mickelson said on the 15th hole to Woods that ‘I’m trying to be more talkative, but I’m not on this back nine.’
Woods understood and responded that they were going back to their old mode of ‘trying to beat each other’s brains in.’
The most revealing moment on the front nine happened after Woods missed a 4-foot short par putt on the second hole to give Mickelson an early advantage.
‘I was half a second from giving him that putt because he always makes those,’ Mickelson said to his brother Tim, who was his caddie.
Mickelson was one up through the front nine before Woods seized the lead with birdies on the par 4 11th and 12th holes. Mickelson then squared it with a birdie on the par 3 13th and retook the lead when Woods bogeyed the par 4 15th.
Woods tied it with birdie from the fringe of the green on the par 3 17th. Both birdied the par 5 18th and then parred the first playoff hole before it went to the par 3 extra hole – which was pitch shots off the practice putting green – where they kept playing until there was a winner.
After he birdied the 17th, Woods said to caddie Joe LaCava ‘just like old times, buddy.’
Mickelson also said it was like old times for him against Woods after that trademark shot.
‘You’ve been doing that to me for 20 years, I don’t know why I am surprised now,’ he said.
Mickelson also had the advantage in challenge bets. Woods won the first challenge for $200,000 when Mickelson didn’t birdie the first hole. Mickelson though, won the next three, which were closest-to-the-pin challenges on par 3 holes, which totaled $600,000.
Both said they couldn’t see challenge bets become a part of regular PGA Tour events.
‘Maybe at match play you could, but that might not be the best thing,’ Mickelson said. ‘I think it added to the competition. It had that flavour of a Tuesday practice round with more at stake.’
