Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson played a high-stakes game that was simply missing good golf

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Certainly not to the degree hoped for or necessary.

Mickelson triumphed in the dark on a makeshift hole played three times, eventually converting a 4-foot putt into a win. It was a weird end of a day that had its moments – but not enough.

The five-time major champion who desperately and jokingly wanted to defeat his longtime foe won four holes in regulation – three when Woods made a bogey.

Both players missed some very easy putts in what turned out to be a four-hole playoff round – three of them on a 93-yard hole where spotlights were used to pursue the # 39; action.

"I could not hit him with a lobe corner," lamented Woods. "Two times."

And it's gone.

Despite driving the ball "like a stallion," said Mickelson – Woods covered his eyes and giggled – he could not take advantage of Woods' wobbly start, holding a 1-inch lead at the turn that could easily have been three or more. four holes.

At one point, former NBA actor Charles Barkley, who was part of the broadcast crew, said, "You know, the United States, you look really bad golf."

It does not matter if it's a world broadcast, and Barkley – who suggested he could hang out with Woods and Mickelson that day – is a golfer just as bad as a great basketball player.

It was a weird overexagence, but the golf course was not so convincing, especially on a magnificent course where Mickelson had suggested earlier in the week that the winner would need to shoot "63 or 64" to win the game. In the end, both players shot 69 on the par 72 course.

Yes, there was a good joke between Woods and Mickelson, but it was far from the needling that, we were told, would happen. As the match continued, both players returned to the grinding mode that had served them well over the past two decades.

"It's amazing how calm it is in the back of the new one," said Mickelson.

Even for guys who earn over $ 40 million in out-of-course revenue a year, $ 9 million a day catches your eye. And they are competitive, which partly explains their success.

But there was just not enough "Wow!" shots. Woods drew even when he had problems with a bird just above the 11th short hole, so he kept his only lead when he hit an approach shot at the 12th hole to score a goal . But Mickelson immediately returned to the bird – his only hole gained with one bird until the last – giving you the feeling that closed holes might be producing fireworks.

But then, Woods bugged on the 15th – his third of the day, leading to a Mickelson victory. A game that was sorely lacking in drama had when Woods clinched a birdie in the 17th. Mickelson was in the position to close the match, but after Woods had his birdie, Lefty could not match and they were all right.

The truth is that Woods seemed rusty and much less motivated to play at his best level in a match that Mickelson did not hide for wanting to win.

"Overall, nothing will hurt his career and his achievements," said Mickelson about Woods. "For me, having a little something like him matters a lot to me."

Mickelson, jokingly, told Woods that he would win this victory every time he saw her again, not to mention wearing the brightly colored belt that was also presented to the winner. Woods had to stay there and take it.

"I've felt so much pressure over the past two days that we've had the chance to do it, from the first hole," said Mickelson.

To that end, Mickelson has spent considerable time in Shadow Creek in recent weeks, including most of this week. Woods practiced in class just before a press conference on Tuesday. He said that he had begun to prepare just a few weeks ago, after a well-deserved break after a successful season on the PGA circuit that had seen him win the Tour Championship, his 80th career victory.