Wild guy Phil’s in hole lot of trouble

PHIL MICKELSON will need his first ever wildcard to play a record 12th Ryder Cup after missing the cut at the US PGA – but potential rookie Tony Finau showed captain Jim Furyk he is a birdie machine.

Five-time Major champion Mickelson, 48, has qualified for every American team since 1995 – and equalled Sir Nick Faldo’s achievement of 11 appearances at Hazeltine.

But the left-hander (below) now has to wait to see if Furyk will offer him a captain’s pick after failing to finish in the top eight in the rankings.

Bryson DeChambeau, Matt Kuchar and Kyle Stanley also missed the cut and will need wildcards to play at Le Golf National next month.

Finau can still qualify for his fi rst Ryder Cup after making the cut following a second-round 66 which included 10 birdies – and no pars on his first nine holes – playing with Furyk.

Finau said: “It was the craziest round I think he’s ever seen. The good news is 10 birdies in a Major is pretty good.

“It was nuts. It was an emotional roller coaster. I think I showed the captain that I can make a lot of birdies. That’ll always serve you well.”

The world No.21 equalled the record for birdies in a single round held by Gary Player. Furyk, who also played with PGA Tour Rookie of the Year Xander Schauffele, said: “It was nice to get a chance to see both guys play. Both of them had a bad start to the week, got over par, struggling, and to watch them both grind it out and hang tough and hang around for the weekend is cool. “And 10 birdies is pretty cool.” NEIL McLEMAN