“Double it!” – When Tiger Woods asked Phil Mickelson to bet $200,000 at The Match 2018 

The inaugural edition of Capital One's The Match was played between Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods, two of the greatest modern-day players and long-time rivals. It had all the hype, which was further amplified by trash talks, challenges, and bets by both players.

It was already said that the side bets would take place during the $9 million "winner-take-all" showdown, but it began with Mickelson placing one in advance on his birdie on the very first hole.

During the pre-event conference of the Match at Shadow Creek in Las Vegas, Mickelson initiated the bet on the first hole, challenging Woods.

"I believe, in fact, that I'm willing to risk a $100,000 that says I birdied the first hole. So, that's how good I feel heading into this match."

He teased the golfer that he didn't have to accept it if he wasn't confident enough, but he was quite confident.

"You don't have to make it at all," he said. "But I'm gonna go for that."

The 15-time major champion is not known for backing out, and he didn't disappoint this time either.

"Hold on, hold on, hold on," he confirmed with Phil before his final response. "So you think you can make birdie on the first hole?"

"I know I'm going to make birdie on the first hole," Mickelson said firmly.

Tiger took no time in accepting the bet and said:

"Double it [bet]"

Mickelson praised his rival, noting that Tiger Woods had surpassed the records he had set during his college golf career and had defeated him in many majors.

"Junior records, college, U.S. amateur: I won one, he won three," he said. "At Shadow Creek, I shot the course record of 61. A couple of years later, you shoot 60.

He added that the match was going to be his day as both would be playing simultaneously, leaving Woods with no opportunity to surpass Phil's record.

"It’s my chance after losing so many tournaments to you, so many majors, to get something back," he said.

At the Match, Mickelson looked set to win $200,000 as his approach shot landed just 9 feet short of the first hole at Shadow Creek. Unfortunately, his birdie putt didn't go as planned, and he ended up losing the bet. Tiger took a dig at him, saying that it hurt his pocket.

However, it was Mickelson who took a bigger check home as he beat the 82-time PGA Tour winner after playing 22 holes. Both had a rematch in 2020 at the second edition of The Match, 'Champions For Charity'. The duo of Tiger Woods and Peyton Manning beat Phil and Tom Brady 1-up.

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How many times has Tiger Woods played at the Match?

Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy during the press conference of The Match 7 at Pelican

The fifteen-time major champion participated in the three editions of Capital One's The Match and won once and lost twice. After competing in the first two events, he was last seen at Match VII, where Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas beat him and McIlroy 3-and-2 in 12 holes.