“I came away from the last match with $9,000,000” – When Phil Mickelson slammed Tiger Woods with trash talk ahead of The Match ft. Tom Brady
Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson faced each other many times in their careers, and most of the time Woods got the better of Mickelson. However, at the first edition of Capital One's The Match, the latter had trumped the 15-time major champion.
Two of the greatest golfers of the modern era faced each other twice at Capital One's exhibition. The first time was at the inaugural edition titled 'The Match: Tiger vs. Phil' in 2018, where Mickelson beat Woods after 22 holes and took away $9 million.
The second was played on May 24, 2020, in a four-ball format between the pair of Tiger Woods and Peyton Manning versus Phil Mickelson and Tom Brady. Prior to the rematch, Tiger and Phil took a few shots at each other during the interview with Bleacher Report, where Brady and Manning were also present.
Mickelson started by showing off his The Match trophy, and Tiger responded with a green jacket. Then, the six-time major champion indirectly reminded Tiger about what happened during the first edition.
He said:
"The thing I came away with from the last match was, you know, $9 million dollars. That was nice, as well as this little trophy."
"Early on, Tiger got the best of me throughout our careers. I mean, if you look at the big picture, the guy's got the greatest record in the history of the game. So any little thing that I have, I'll hold on to. And this win, I'll hold on to that."
Phil Mickelson continued that the defeat definitely hurt Tiger, as he was eager for the rematch. Woods also insisted that it happen at his home golf course, Medalist Golf Club, in Hobe Sound, Florida.
He added:
"I totally understand that line of thinking. I probably would have done the same thing if I had lost and been p***d off too. But Tom and I are going to go down to your home course, and you're going to defend our title again, and then there will be no excuses."
Eventually, Woods was able to make it even after beating Mickelson and Brady 1-up at the second edition of The Match
How many times has Phil Mickelson featured in The Match?
The six-time major champion participated in the first four editions of Capital One's The Match and won two times and lost two times.
In the inaugural edition in 2018, Phil Mickelson defeated Tiger Woods in 22 holes. In the following edition in 2020, Woods and Manning trumped Mickelson and Brady 1-up.
In the third season, titled 'Champions for Change,' the duo of Phil Mickelson and Charles Barkley won 4-and-3 over the pair of Stephen Curry and Peyton Manning.
Phil-Brady pair was back in the fourth edition of The Match on July 6, 2021, but was once again unsuccessful. They lost to Bryson DeChambeau and Aaron Rodgers by 3-and-2. Since 2021, Mickelson hasn't appeared at Capital One's exhibition event.
The most recent edition was held on June 29, where NFL stars Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce beat NBA duo Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson by 3-and -2.