$200,000 on the line in Michigan

Michigan:

Phil Mickelson, Fred Couples, Lee Trevino and Arnold Palmer left lots of money on the course on Monday in the Par-3 Shootout. When the two-day, 18-hole skins event resumes on Tuesday, the players will be shooting for $200,000 on the very first hole. "That's a lot of money," Mickelson said. "We didn't hit the kind of shots we wanted to, so the first hole is big. Right out of the gate you have to be warmed up and ready to go". Couples missed a 1-metre putt on Monday that would have been worth $140,000. He won hole No. 7 with a par but needed to validate that victory by winning or matching the low score on the following hole. The putt would have tied Mickelson at par on No. 8. "I was awfully edgy and nervous on the putt, and I didn't make a very good putt," Couples said. "I tried to hit it firm and I pushed it. It wasn't a very hard putt, but I made a very bad stroke, and I felt the pressure of winning all of the holes". Each hole in the event is worth $20,000, and that amount carries over until someone wins a hole and validates the win on the following hole. Couples' miss on No. 8 meant that all $180,000 available in Monday's opening nine holes is carried over to the first hole of Tuesday's second round. "Having all that money on the line was tough," Couples said. "I didn't handle it very well. I get another shot at it, and hopefully something good will happen". An additional $10,000 is awarded per hole to the player whose tee shot is closest to the pin. Mickelson won $50,000 on Monday, while Trevino won $30,000 and Couples $10,000. The Par-3 Shootout also features a $1 million bonus to any player who records a hole-in-one. Trevino won that bonus last year on No. 7. Palmer was embarrassed to be the only player shut out of money on Monday. "I enjoyed everything except the way I played," he said. (AP)