Eyeing Presidents Cup, Mickelson progresses
OLD WESTBURY, N.Y. Phil Mickelson bounded onto the small stage near the clubhouse Thursday to meet with reporters after the first round of The Northern Trust looking like he just shot 65. He sounded like he shot 65, too. “I actually had a good day,” Mickelson said. “I played well.”
He actually shot 2-over-par 72 at sun-drenched Glen Oaks Club in the first round of the first event of the FedExCup Playoffs. But ever the optimist, Mickelson saw at a half-full glass despite trailing the leader by eight strokes.
The five-time major champion concentrated on the positives rather than dwell on the negatives and announced good things were ahead.
“I made some dumb mistakes and a couple of doubles and had some putting issues. But I really had a good day today because I hit 11 fairways,” Mickelson said. “The long game is starting to feel easy. I’m hitting iron shots with ease, and what I did really well last year, which was putt, I’ve struggled these last few weeks. But I’ll get that worked out because that’s the easiest thing to fix. I’m going to have a good week. I know that it’s not the greatest start, but it’s not bad, either.”
Russell Henley got off to a great start. Henley, whose last of three PGA Tour titles came in the Shell Houston Open the week before the Masters, made eight birdies and shot 64 to take the early lead by one over world No. 1 Dustin Johnson, who birdied three of his final six holes.
Two back were Camilo Villegas, Chris Kirk and Scott Brown.
“I just tried to play somewhat conservative and just make sure I was hitting to the fat part of the green and give myself some birdie putts,” Henley said. “The greens are perfect, and got to roll in a few.”
Mickelson hasn’t rolled in many of late. Since splitting with caddie Jim “Bones” Mackay, Mickelson missed cuts in the British Open and PGA Championship and finished in ties for 20th and 39th in two other starts.
He was dejected when he left Quail Hollow in his last start in the PGA Championship, saying his focus was non-existent. That part of his arsenal is better, he said, but the putter is leaving him wanting.
“I’ve been driving it better than I ever have. My iron play is coming back. My distance control is coming back. All the things have really come back, but the last thing is scoring. And, in this case, it was just putting,” said Mickelson, who spent more than an hour on the putting green after his round. “But I’m starting to feel a lot more relaxed. I don’t feel like I’m fighting it out there anymore.”
Mickelson, who hasn’t won since the 2013 British Open, is finding motivation late in the year in his need to get over the frustration of playing well but not scoring well. And The Presidents Cup is another motivating factor.
Mickelson has been on the last 22 U.S. teams for The Presidents Cup or Ryder Cup. He is 20th in the standings, with the top 10 after next week’s Dell Technologies Championship in Boston automatically making the team. Captain Steve Stricker will make two at-large picks to fill out the team two days after the conclusion of the Dell Technologies tournament.
The matches are at Liberty National in New Jersey on Sept. 28Oct. 1.
“It would definitely be a different feeling if he weren’t involved somehow,” said Jordan Spieth, who shot 69 to open the playoffs. “On the course, he’s very good at kind of figuring out if players are up in the air about who they should play with; he’s very good about feeling that out. In the team room, he’s as good as anybody ... just keeping it light, understanding kind of the mentality of what to say, when to say it, to get everybody ready to go.” Mickelson just hopes to go. “I would love to be on that team, but I’ve got to bring something to the table,” he said. “So I’ve got to go shoot scores. If I can do that and add something to the team, I would love to be on it. If not, you know, the captain’s got to do what’s best for the team, so that’s totally cool, too.
“I feel like my game’s coming around. I hope it’s in time to make the team.”