Mickelson First Hole Birdie Bet, $200,000
Earlier in the week, Tiger and Phil drummed up a little extra hype for The Match by putting down $100,000, then at Tiger’s insistence, twice that, that Mickelson would score a birdie on the first hole. He had a nine foot putt to win the $200,000, but he missed it, so Tiger took it instead.
Closest to the Fifth Hole Pin, $100,000
The next side bet came on the fifth hole at Shadow Creek, a straight closest-to-the-pin contest for $100,000. Mickelson won, allowing him to recoup half of the previous bet’s loss.
Closest to the Eighth Hole Pin, $200,000
Next there was another closest-to-the-pin side bet, this one on the eighth hole, and once again Mickelson won, costing Tiger another $200,000 and putting the overall balance of the side-bets in his favor by $100,000, a trend that would continue throughout the match.
Ninth Hole Eagle, $1 Million (!)
This was a side bet that got upped in the heat of competition, as it was originally a $1 million bet that would go to whoever could eagle the ninth hole. That would have required getting the ball in the hole on the second shot, and after a talking it over the two decided to “add a 0 to it,” turning a $100,000 bet to a $1,000,000 one. Unfortunately for lovers of seven-figure action, neither Tiger nor Phil really came close to scoring an eagle on the hole.
Closest to the Thirteenth Hole Pin, $300,000
The final side bet of “The Match” was another closest-to-the-pin contest, this one for $300,000. And once again Mickelson won, in what was possibly an omen regarding the ultimate outcome of the contest.
Altogether, in addition to the $9 million main prize, Mickelson went home with another $400,000 of Tiger’s money.
