Lefty scoops $9 million jackpot, and bragging rights over Tiger

By Rahul Banerji

Phil Mickelson just about had enough left in the tank to win the hugely hyped faceoff with Tiger Woods at the Shadow Creek course in Las Vegas late on Friday night.

No spectators other than 700 invited guests were allowed on course and the action was live on pay per view television.

Social media was on fire throughout the contest with platforms recording massive traffic all the way through.

After the two had battled over 21 holes, Lefty dropped a birdie putt on a short par 3 hitting off the putting green towards the 18^th hole to pocket the $9 million on offer in the winner take all contest.

Needle battle

At no point of The Match, as it was billed, did either player ever lead by more than one hole.

Woods converted a chance on the 17th to stop Mickelson closing out the match, then missed one himself from eight feet on the first extra hole.

There was plenty of banter and backchat with both superstars miked up for the occasion – and side bets as well – in a contest that brought live pay TV, intense action and gambling together like never before.

For many observers of the game, this is a defining moment and could well be a template for many future such contests.

There were as many as eight side bets for charity during the 22-hole contest of which five were undecided.

Fierce criticism

While the match aroused massive interest, there was also fierce criticism about the way the game had in effect been reduced to a spectacle. There were less charitable comments on social media as well.

Mickelson also took home a specially designed leather belt that topped a pile of hundred dollar bills amounting to the $9 million, though the notes weren’t real currency.

“I was just trying to calm down, My heart can’t take much more,” Mickelson said later. “A day like today isn’t going to take anything away from his (Tiger’s) greatness.

“He’s the greatest of all time, but just to have a little bit of smack talk for the coming years means a lot to me because I really don’t have much on him.”

Added Tiger, “You couldn’t have made this event any better than it was. It was back and forth and very competitive on a golf course that was playing on the tricky side.”

But both players felt such contests would not feature on regular Tour schedules.

“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 flavor of a Tuesday practice round with more at stake.”

Also read: Tiger sits mid-pack in field for 2018 Hero World Challenge