PHIL LICENSED TO THRILL AGAIN Magical Mickelson proving he’s not over the hill
FoR almost a year, the man known affectionately as ‘Phil the Thrill’ looked distinctly over the hill. Without so much as a top 10 finish in all that time, and his 50th birthday coming up in June, it was hardly surprising the sporting obituaries were prepared.
now, after a remarkable fortnight even by Phil mickelson’s standards, we’re left wondering if perhaps we were too hasty. is the man who earned his nickname through his remarkable Houdini escapades around the greens ready to pull off his biggest magic trick of all?
looking five years younger than his age after losing 30lb in weight, mickelson began his comeback at the Saudi invitational, where eight days ago he finished tied third.
a one- off? mickelson promptly flew halfway round the world, and, in his own words, ‘played like a stallion’ over the first three days of the Pebble Beach pro-am, one of the oldest events on the PGa Tour.
For the second successive Sunday, therefore, he was in contention to win. He began a shot behind the leader, Canadian nick Taylor, who belied the fact that he has just one victory to his name with a wonderful front nine completed in 32 shots.
With mickelson wasting a fine start of his own with an ugly double bogey-bogey run from the 8th, Taylor had a five-stroke lead.
mickelson typically fought back with a birdie at the 10th and made further inroads by picking up another shot at the 11th.
Wind gusts of up to 30mph were being recorded as mickelson made a miraculous par at the 12th.
Taylor was really struggling but chipped in at the 15th to stop mickelson’s momentum and increase his lead back to three shots, with american Kevin Streelman moving alongside the maverick leftie with a late run of birdies.
mickelson’s new-found confidence heading into the meat of the season was illustrated by some comments expressed beside the monterey peninsula last week that were as jaw-dropping as the scenery.
asked about the vanilla Distance insight report published last Tuesday that somehow took the governing bodies two years to prepare, mickelson sighed and said: ‘We must be the only major professional sport still governed by amateurs.’
if that was not cutting enough for the USGa, mickelson was just getting started. Right now, he’s not in the field for their pride and joy, the US open, the only major he hasn’t won and where he’s finished runner-up six times.
This year it’s being staged at Winged Foot, the scene of his most dramatic near miss, where he took a double-bogey at the 18th in 2006 and didn’t spare himself. ‘How stupid can you get?’ he pronounced.
mickelson was certain, therefore, to receive a special exemption the USGa hand out in such instances. Except, mickelson made it quite clear they would be wasting their time.
‘i wouldn’t accept it,’ he said. ‘Either i get into the field on my own or i don’t play. i don’t want a sympathy spot.’
With the mickelson mojo on the rise once more, he will surely make it. That horrendous run of form last year saw his proud record of 25 consecutive seasons in the world’s top 50 come to an end.
now 72nd, he needs to find his way back into the top 60 come the end of may to earn an exemption.
meanwhile, on the European Tour, australian min Woo lee won the Handa Vic open by two strokes from new Zealander Ryan Fox.
alongside it was an lPGa event won by South Korea’s Hee young Park.