Phil Mickelson will never let Tiger Woods forget losing The Match
Phil Mickelson finally got the better of Tiger Woods, winning The Match on Friday in Las Vegas with a birdie on the 22nd hole.
For the better part of 20 years, Tiger Woods has gotten the better of Phil Mickelson. That all changed on Friday in Las Vegas. Suddenly it’s Mickelson who has the bragging rights in their rivalry.
Mickelson birdied the 22nd hole at Shadow Creek to beat Woods and win The Match, along with the $9 million prize and a gold belt buckle. Now that he’s finally defeated his nemesis, he’s not about to let him forget about it either.
“I know that, big picture, your career is the greatest of all-time. I’ve seen you do things that are just remarkable,” Mickelson said to Woods at their joint press conference after the match. “But just know that I will not ever let you live this one down. That I’ll bring this up every time I see you. I will wear that belt buckle every time I see you.”
Woods made Mickelson work for it. The 48-year-old Mickelson looked like he had the match within his grasp, safely on the green of the par-three 17th with a 1-up lead and Woods in the fringe. Woods then holed his chip, the most dramatic shot of a round where neither player had their best game. Mickelson missed his birdie, bringing the duel to the par-five 18th all-square.
Both players two-putted for birdie, sending them back to the 18th tee for the first hole of sudden death. Woods had to lay up after hitting his drive in the rough, while Mickelson had a clear shot to the green with his second. He came up well short, and thought for a moment he found the water. The truth wasn’t much better: he was in a plugged lie in the greenside bunker. He chipped onto the green and missed his lengthy birdie putt, giving Woods a chance to win. The normally unflappable Woods, however, slid his putt past the hole.
Instead of playing 18 again, the organizers arranged something different. They would now play an improvised 92-yard par-three, with the tee box on the practice putting area and a new hole cut into the 18th green. With the boxes containing the $9 million stacked right behind them, Woods sent his first attempt at this hole over the green. Then he hit it to far again on his second try.
“How do you not hit a green with a lob wedge? Twice,” Woods wondered after the match. “So that’s an opportunity that went wasted, and Phil capitalized on it.”
Mickelson, however, didn’t take advantage at first, missing two birdie putts to win. With Woods facing a five-footer for par on the 21st hole, Mickelson told him to pick it up and try again. “I don’t want to win like this,” he said.
Woods hit the green on his third attempt, but Mickelson was closer. When Woods again saw his putt slide by the hole, Mickelson faced another putt to win. With darkness already descended on Shadow Creek and lights illuminating the green, this time Mickelson made his short birdie to end the marathon match.
It wasn’t a major championship, or even a regular PGA Tour event, but Mickelson was proud he finally has something to boast about in his rivalry with Woods.
“It’s not the Masters, it’s not the U.S. Open, I know. But it’s something, and it’s just nice to have a little something on you,” he said.
He also won the side betting, taking home $500,000 from Woods to give to his favorite charity.
As for where this unique format goes from here, Mickelson says it’s too soon to predict whether something like this will happen again.
“I think we need to see how people liked it, or not,” he said. “This was really fun for me. This is some of the most fun I’ve had on a golf course.”
“I just know that today was really a special, fun day.”
He’s $9 million richer because of it, but beating Woods may be priceless.