It needed to be seen in the context that not only were they playing in the final group, they also faced the pressure of a final round in a major championship.
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Mickelson had scored a 63 himself in the opening round on Thursday last week.
Right on his heels, nearly to the very end, was Mickelson. I don’t look back on anything and say, ‘I should have done this differently or that.’ I played well enough to win this championship by a number of strokes, and I get beat my three strokes. Even in defeat, finishing second to Henrik Stenson, Mickelson scored a kind of a win. I’ve always thought he is one of the best ball strikers in the game and that major championships are perfectly suited for him, and I knew that he would ultimately come through and win. “I am disappointed that it was at my expense”. Nothing, however, stands out more than Nicklaus and Watson’s Duel in the Sun at Turnberry in 1977.
Nicklaus watched on in wonderment as Henrik Stenson and Phil Mickelson produced a quite titanic tussle in the final round of the 145th Open.
After his near miss at Winged Foot, Rosburg claimed his only major win in the PGA Championship at Minneapolis thanks to a record-equalling 30 on the front nine in his final round, overturning a six-shot deficit on third-round leader Jerry Barber.
McIlroy said he will not watch the Olympic golf tournament as he would sooner tune in for “the stuff that matters”, but Pete Cowen, coach of both Stenson and Willett, believes the Northern Irishman will be missing out.
The second place finish is Mickelson’s 11th of his career, second only to Jack Nicklaus. If Stewart doesn’t make a lengthy par putt, Mickelson at least would’ve had a shot in a playoff – although with Amy Mickelson about to give birth any minute and Mickelson’s vow that he’d be there for the big event, who knows if he would’ve stayed for it? Washington quarterback Kirk Cousins, Chiefs safety Eric Berry, Rams cornerback Trumaine Johnson and Bears wide receiver Alshon Jeffrey will all be on one-year deals this year.
“It would be pretty cool to have that next to some of the other nice trophies I’ve managed to win”.
“I’ve heard people complain that it’s robot golf, which is fair enough I suppose”.
Mickelson doesn’t see his window closing all that quickly. Reigning U.S. Open victor Dustin Johnson is also in the field, coming off a ninth-place finish in the Open Championship, along with Canadian golf hero and 2003 Masters champion, Mike Weir.
No one older than 48 has ever captured a major. I’ve got another opportunity in two weeks in the last major of the year in the USA and then we’ve got the Olympics and the Ryder Cup. You’re spending so much time over here anyway, why don’t you just play on our men’s team?’ ” Blackmon recalled. “And yet I got beat”. But Mickelson struggled to a dismal 73, three-putting for par after driving the fourth green and making par at the par-5 6th even though he hit five-iron into the green for his second shot.
He looked like he’d done it all before. But the fact is, if somebody plays some incredible golf, that’s what it should do.
Turnberry entered the conversation Sunday at Royal Troon after four holes, when it was clear Henrik Stenson and Phil Mickelson had something special going.
Stenson and Mickelson traded birdie blow after birdie blow in a remarkable final-round slugfest at Royal Troon on Sunday before the 40-year-old Swede emerged victorious over the 46-year-old American.
Miller came from six shots behind.
This one was more like the 39-year-old showdown between Watson and Nicklaus at another course in the British Open rotation, the one 25 miles down the Scottish coastline.
Small wonder that Mickelson calls it the “best I’ve played and not won”.
The two-man duel was scintillating stuff, a back-and-forth match that will go down as among the greatest in history.
And that was just day one. But it stopped, he hit his approach to 20 feet, and had three putts to win.
Mickelson boasted to ESPN’s Rick Reilly when asked about a comment he made regarding getting better with age.
That was the decisive blow.
Imagine two stars who pulled away from the rest of the field into the weekend and then set up a “near” matchplay situation. “It makes it even more special to beat a competitor like Phil. He’s been one of the best to play the game, and certainly in the last 20 years”.
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Mickelson was gracious in defeat.
