Mickelson upbeat despite recent form
AUGUSTA, Ga. – Notwithstanding this year being the 15th anniversary of his first triumph in a major championship, and with the 100th round of his Masters career coming on Friday, Phil Mickelson, just two months shy of his 49th birthday, still feels like a kid whenever he’s at Augusta National Golf Club.
“This is a place that you drive up Magnolia Lane and things just change for everyone,” Mickelson said Tuesday ahead of Thursday’s start of the 83rd edition of the Masters. “You just have that special feeling, that special remembrance of when you were a kid and dreaming of coming here and playing, and it brings out oftentimes the best in everyone. I’m certainly hoping that’s the case here.”
The drive down Magnolia Lane has been his elixir before, especially in 2004 when he finally ended a maddening 0-for-42 slump in the majors by making an 18-footer for birdie on the 72nd hole to win the first of three green jackets.
He’s looking for the same magical potion this week to put an end to a string of poor performances that have left him puzzled. After he won his 44th PGA Tour title in February in the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am — a win that stamped him as a Masters favorite — his form deserted him as he finished no better than a tie for 37th in his next five starts.
Thus, while he’s always looked forward to the Masters, this year there was some trepidation as the first major of the year neared. Even his schedule was thrown out of whack due to the condensed PGA Tour season, leading him to forgo playing the week before a major, which he has always felt suited him best.
So instead of playing his way into the Masters, he practiced his way into the Masters. Mickelson spent four days at Augusta National last week, studying the course, taking notes, having some fun. He continued his prep work at his California home, where he spent plenty of time practicing on a putting green at his house that he ramped up to 16 on the Stimpmeter.
“It’s a chance to be fresh and ready, but it’s also a chance to be maybe not as sharp,” Mickelson said of not playing last week. “I’m just not quite sure how it’s going to play out. I think if I drive it well, my short irons, wedge play, putter will take over. That’s kind of the hope; I’ve been working on those, as well.
“For me, if I drive it well, I should have a good week.”
He hasn’t had a good week in the Masters in a while. While he notched 11 top-10 finishes in 12 years from 1999 to 2010 — a stretch that included all three of his victories — Mickelson has had just one top-10 in his last six starts.
His recent form doesn’t bode well for him. But his mind is telling him something else. At this place, his favorite in the entire golf world, he always has a chance. Here, he can be a kid again.
“Getting on this golf course where I don’t feel so handcuffed, I can go ahead and let loose a little bit,” Mickelson said. “If I drive the ball reasonably straight, I’m going to be fine, and there’s plenty of room to drive it straight here.”
But when asked if he currently is driving it straight, Phil went all Phil.
“I don’t know, but I’m hitting it far, and that’s all I care about right now,” he said.