PREDICTABLY, oddsmakers have installed Tiger Woods as a heavy favorite to prevail over Phil Mickelson in their mano-a-mano encounter this November. At any time other than during his injury-plagued seasons, he would have been in the same position. In this instance, the disparity appears even more pronounced, and not simply because his opponent is just two years shy of 50, a milestone formally signaling a swoon in skill set. For all his physical travails, he has been playing outstanding golf of late, punctuated by stints at the British Open and PGA Championship in which he came close to nabbing the hardware.
For the record, the Westgate Superbook has bettors for Woods needing to put in $150 to take $100 in the event of a victory. Meanwhile, those backing Mickelson will find their $100 bringing back $160 following a positive outcome. The numbers will shift depending on the action, but not the prediction on the ultimate outcome. For the record, both have made pay-per-view appearances before, and between 2003 and 2005, the Battle at the Bridges had them pitted against each other thrice, but with partners. Come Thanksgiving weekend, though, they’ll be going head-to-head in match play, with a winner-take-all pot of $9 million at stake.
Significantly, Woods made mention of the spectacle in a tweet yesterday, captioning a poster of “The Match: Tiger vs Phil” with a simple “It’s on.” Mickelson, who literally just opened a Twitter account, wasted no time replying, “I bet you think this is the easiest $9M you will ever make” along with an emoji of a face shedding tears of joy. The subsequent back and forth: “Think you will earn some bragging rights?” “Let’s do this.” Indeed, the promotions have begun. In any case, the personalities involved, their up-and-down history, and the format make for good TV. They’ll be mic’ed up, ensuring that their banter — and, likely as not, trash talking, some of which may even be good-natured — will be broadcast for all and sundry to savor.
Regardless of predispositions, fans will want to tune in and see Woods and Mickelson in a different light. Their relationship has thawed of late, and to the point where they might now actually be friends. Which should lead to the best kind of golf outside official competitions: where pride and ego are at the forefront, and where cameras just happen to be recording the developments.
Anthony L. Cuaycong has been writing Courtside since BusinessWorld introduced a Sports section in 1994.
