The Mickelson-Woods Mega Match Might Get Even Bigger

There have been rumors for months now that there would be a mega-match between golf titans Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods. It was finally reported last week that the match is set to take place Thanksgiving weekend but it looks to be more complicated than we ever imagined.

The original idea for the matchup was to have Phil and Tiger square off in a one-time match play event that would result in a $10 million payout. Now, it appears that the two are looking to make this event an annual affair, even looking to add more of the world’s top players to the fun. If this is all going to work out, however, there are a few hurdles that the group will have to overcome.

The first sticking point in the negotiations seems to be the payout. While both Woods and Mickelson are more than fine with putting that kind of cash on the line, the PGA TOUR seems to be against the idea. The Tour is worried about having an event that has a purse greater than only a few of their own tournaments.

For perspective, the payout would be about the same as what Justin Thomas took in this year for winning the WGC-Bridgestone.

European Ryder Cup player Colin Montgomerie shakes hands with USA’s…

European Ryder Cup player Colin Montgomerie shakes hands with USA’s Tiger Woods after defeating him and Phil Mickelson 2 and 1, with caddie Steve Williams during the four-ball match at the 35th Ryder… Get premium, high resolution news photos at Getty Images

The other major discussion is the timing of the event. If this is going to be a yearly affair, the event will come into conflict with the World Cup of Golf, which is also scheduled during the Thanksgiving weekend. One of the potential solutions would be to have Woods and Mickelson tee off later in the evening, playing some of the holes under the lights, as Tiger did from 1999-2005.

Speaking about the event, Tiger thinks there is definitely potential for more matches like this. “The plans are for this one and possibly more, but you just never know. When we first did the Showdown at Sherwood, it was basically only a one‑time deal, but it ended up going more than that. So, we’ll see what happens with it this year,” said Woods. Mickelson added that “We’re both realizing that we can get a lot more done together than on our own.”

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Regardless of if this mega showdown continues into the future, it definitely looks like it’ll happen this year. And depending on how well the pilot match goes, we wouldn’t be surprised to see these two golf giants work to add more showdowns like this in the future.

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