Talking Point

Opinion was unsurprisingly split on ‘The Match’ between Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods in Las Vegas

Tiger vs Phil

The GM view: Most would agree it wasn’t the most exciting spectacle, and many understandably had an issue with the huge prize pool, but some elements did work well and the viewing numbers exceeded expectations. It will be interesting to see if ‘The Match’ franchise continues going forward, as many expect it to.

Nate Ross: It was boring and failed to justify the hype. I really wanted to love it, the golf just sucked.

@Kingfridays: I watched it and honestly thought it was terrible. The old Shell matches were much more enjoyable. All the bantering they talked about in the lead-up didn’t occur for the most part and to end it with a pitch and putt was disappointing.

David Stanford: I was actually pleasantly surprised. Yes, the quality of golf wasn’t as good as it could have been and it would have benefited from bigger crowds, but I found it exciting and I thought it was genuinely fascinating hearing how the players interacted with each other and their caddies.

@mickelsonuk: I expected it to be boring, but I couldn’t stop watching it. Yes, the money was obscene, but isn’t most sports prize money at the top level? At the end of the day it’s their job, and I don’t see anyone criticising other sportsmen like Floyd Mayweather or Conor Mcgregor.