Mickelson made a 12-foot birdie from the fringe on No.17, then created a birdie chance on the par-5 18th.
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PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. – Stop me if you’ve heard this one before: Phil Mickelson presented a brilliant display of golf for most of the week, faltered during the final round, attempted to mount a furious late comeback, then ultimately wound up as a disappointing runner-up.
Phil Mickelson’s near 1,000-day wait for an elusive PGA Tour win continued in agonising fashion as he missed a 5ft putt to force a play-off at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.
“It never crossed my mind that I wouldn’t make that one”, Mickelson said.
The momentum he conjured here may help down the line, but it will do little to blunt the sting from the sobering fact that this will go down as yet another trophy that got away.
The Masters is eight weeks down the road.
Mickelson, 45, made four bogeys in the round after he’d played Pebble Beach without a scorecard blemish on Saturday in shooting 66. Mickelson remains winless since his victory at the 2013 Open Championship.
“I think I took it for granted”, he said of playing on tour.
Nobody’s kidding after Taylor’s nine-birdie, two-bogey round of 34-31-65 at one of world’s finest courses, four of those birdies coming in succession on 13, 14, 15 and 16.
Taylor didn’t even realize he was in the Pebble Beach Pro-Am – he still has limited status as a past PGA Tour victor – until Monday when he was learned Cal Pettersen had withdrawn. “I worked so hard”.
Whatever pressure Mickelson felt to win again probably did not compare to Taylor’s desperation.
The finish was vintage Mickelson. She almost left the grounds, but when her husband canned a 29-foot birdie putt on the 16th hole for his fourth straight birdie, something told her she should stick around.
1 – Vaughn Taylor’s Cinderella Story at Pebble is quite an incredible one.
The chip was fine. “I just tried to stay out of Vaughn’s way and support him”.
“I wasn’t even thinking about making that putt”, Taylor said.
“I played a little bit tighter through the round than I wanted to”, Mickelson said. “I made some good swings”.
“I was trying to kind of free it up, but I didn’t salvage par on some holes that I needed to salvage pars”. “And I was just like, ‘There’s no way he just missed that putt.’ His short game is ridiculous”.
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In that respect, it was a big step in the right direction. “But I’m also very close”.
But the fading hopes changed when he sank a lengthy birdie on No. 17 to put him one shot back. Pebble Beach is known for its great weather, breathtaking views and sandy beaches. In four West Coast starts, he finished second and tied for third. With his win, the one-time Ryder Cup player punched his ticket to the Masters.
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The secret? A long break from golf, one of the longest of his career.
