SAN FRANCISCO -- Not all that long ago, drawing Phil Mickelson as a playing partner in one of golf's team events was the equivalent of swimming to the shore from Alcatraz.
Guys shivered at the prospect. Some survived and escaped. But not many.
|
|
| Phil Mickelson departs some words of wisdom to a once-sputtering Sean O'Hair. (AP) |
He once was the cooler.
Now he's the Fixer.
A veteran of all eight Presidents Cup matches, only one of which has resulted in an American defeat, Mickelson had somehow amassed a losing record. In fact, he was a combined and underperforming 21-27-15 in the Ryder and P-Cup competitions entering the week.
Now, in an event filled with a blinding constellation of stars, he's unquestionably burning brightest, jumping to a 3-0 record with three different playing partners at Harding Park Golf Course.
Twinned with a sputtering Sean O'Hair on Saturday morning in alternate shot, the two bolted to a relatively carefree 5-and-3 victory, as the easygoing O'Hair seemed positively energized by his 39-year-old partner. O'Hair, the lone American rookie in international events, was 0-2 in the first two sessions.
"He was so much fun to play with today, just making me feel comfortable," O'Hair said. "We were joking around, we were loose. And I played OK and it worked out.
"Phil did a great job of kind of coaching me through today. We were very comfortable. I couldn't have had a better pairing today."
| More Presidents Cup links |
Those are words that have not often been said of Lefty in these team affairs, which previously have come during a time when Mickelson had all but put his clubs away for a long winter's nap. But over the past three years, it's been different. He's 7-3-3 in that span entering the afternoon session Saturday.
"What has really helped me is having the FedEx Cup be so close to this event," Mickelson said. "Usually after the PGA [Championship], I would take 4-6 weeks off and then try to gear up for one event, and it was very tough for me to get my game sharp.
"Whereas, last week, I had some time off and it was very easy to have a week off and keep your game in shape. I think the FedEx Cup has definitely helped me in my performance in these team events."
Given the turnaround, that logic seems irrefutable. At one point, Mickelson hit rock bottom at the 2003 P-Cup in South Africa, when he went 0-5 as the competition ended in a tie. In the seven stagings of the event, he's the only guy ever to get blanked, or in his personal parlance, "boat-raced," in all five matches.
It didn't take long for Mickelson to pick up where he left off two weeks ago, when he won the Tour Championship in Atlanta. It even rubbed off on O'Hair, who chipped in for a birdie on the ninth and made a key 24-footer for another birdie on the 12th.
So, all of a sudden, Mickelson has become the U.S. team's Pied Striper, a golfing good-luck charm, his momentum in this event having turned around to match the results from his 2009 season.
That about-face started when Mickelson got a putting lesson from Dave Stockton in San Diego three weeks ago, reverting to a forward-press putting style he had used during his younger years. Stockton was following Mickelson's match on Saturday, beaming with a semblance of parental pride.
"I mean, you know how good he is, so it wasn't exactly teaching rocket science," Stockton laughed of their practice sessions. "If you are going to teach somebody, you might as well teach somebody who is really good to start with, right?"
Stockton self-deprecatingly described his lesson as akin to teaching a "fish how to swim." Stockton, a two-time winner of the PGA Championship, cracked that his coaching genius was immediately summoned.
"Yeah, it just sort of rolled right up and grabbed him," Stockton laughed. "But it's been fun to watch."
Friday was that and more. Mickelson played with Justin Leonard, who had faced a 37-inch putt on Thursday night to win his match outright and badly blew it on the final stroke of opening day. The two had never before been paired despite participating in a combined 21 cup competitions, but Lefty helped get Leonard back on track with the best stretch of play of any player this week.
Lefty rattled flagsticks with some of his best shots of the season, whistling three approach shots to within 17 inches of the cup or closer on three of the first seven holes as Leonard watched, almost speechless. Of course, Mickelson is rarely at a loss for words.
"It was crazy," Leonard said after the match. "He hits in there 18 feet on No. 8 and says, 'Well, partner, I'm sorry, but it looks like I am going to have to putt one.' Then, of course, he makes that."
It was the best micro-burst of the week from any player. On the third hole, Mickelson staked a shot from 178 yards to 17 inches, knocked a wedge from 51 yards to one foot on the sixth, then dropped one from 168 yards to 10 inches on the seventh. Mickelson made seven 3s in 16 holes.
"He's been playing just like he did at East Lake," his caddie, Jim Mackay said.
Better still, after coming into the week with a slight back strain, Mickelson has finished early each time. Mickelson hasn't yet played the last two holes -- his first three matches ended by the 16th hole or earlier.
"Yeah, Tiger, he was giving me a hard time, because he hasn't played those [closing] holes," Mickelson smirked.
Not this time. Even Woods and partner Steve Stricker went to the 18th on Saturday morning, making Mickelson the U.S. close-out king of the moment.
While Lefty and O'Hair were again paired and sent off last Saturday afternoon, Mickelson had been first off the tee in the first three sessions, prompting somebody to joke that if his hometown San Diego Padres need a leadoff man, he might be a candidate.
"You haven't seen me run," Mickelson said.
When you're batting 1.000, wheels don't much matter.
