Phil Mickelson Wins 'The Match' in the Dark

In what was set as a huge duel between two of the greatest to have ever played the game, “The Match” eventually delivered.

It took a while, but after 22 holes, Phil Mickelson finally claimed a rivalry win over Tiger Woods.

The entire first half of the event was lifeless. It was a disaster for B/R Live, who ended up streaming the entire event for free. It was also a disaster for those watching who thought they would be getting one product and received something different.

Tiger and Phil were both playing terrible golf on the front nine at Shadow Creek. The two were also boring walking between shots where they were mic’d up and most of us had hoped they would entertain. The combination of terrible golf and lifeless competition carried over into the broadcast where Ernie Johnson and company continuously talked over the two as they spoke with their caddies and with each other.

Probably the most entertaining moment was when Tiger, down one on the 17th hole chipped in.

With the two all-square after 18 holes and the sky getting dark enough to bring out the lights, things got interesting. After missing a putt to win on the 21st hole, Phil uttered these words, “I don’t want to win like that” as he gave Tiger a putt that could have been missed and extended the match. It was a ballsy move, and after Tiger threw a dart in to inside eight feet on the 23rd hole, Phil knew he had to answer and he hit it to 4 feet.

Phil came away with the win and $9 million extra dollars.