“It just reaffirms that I knew I was close. I'm grateful to be a part of this tournament, and to be here competing and then to play well, it means a lot,” Mickelson said. “To come out today and play the way I did and hit the shots when I needed, it's so much fun. Mickelson, 52, a three-time Masters winner, was quiet at the champions dinner on Tuesday night and did his best to say the right things in brief question-and-answer sessions with the media, intent on keeping the focus on golf and nothing else. Mickelson handled the few questions he took during the week the way Tiger Woods handled the slippery slopes with his bad leg: carefully. “This is so much fun,” Mickelson said after his 7-under final round and eventual share of second place, four strokes behind winner Jon Rahm. Noticeably thinner and outwardly more reserved, Mickelson matched the conditions Sunday, turning from cool and gray to warm and sunny as the afternoon unfolded. “To come out today and play the way I did and hit the shots when I needed, it's so much fun."īut Mickelson has talked for years about how Augusta National flips an emotional switch in him, and it happened again this year. Mickelson had scorched his own reputation with his words and deeds, and his golf game seemed like collateral damage. They changed the public perception of one of the most popular golfers of any era. His move to LIV Golf and his comments about it did more than create a firestorm. Mickelson arrived at Augusta as a different man than the one who won three green jackets and considered the Masters his happy place.Ĭaught in the fury of a personal storm of his own creation, Mickelson skipped the Masters last year. “It’s the first time I’ve seen him smile all day.” “Nice to see him happy,” said a man watching greenside. With eyes hidden behind his ever-present sunglasses, Mickelson let a smile spread across his face and the weight of a week that thrilled and threatened him was complete. He also last month became the only player to stay in the top 50 in the world ranking for 24 consecutive years.AUGUSTA, GEORGIA | When Phil Mickelson completed his soul-enriching final-round 65 on Sunday afternoon at Augusta National, rekindling his romance with the Masters and all that comes with it, he gave his brother/caddie Tim Mickelson a happy tap and then stared down the 18th fairway while playing competitor Jordan Spieth finished his work. Mickelson has not won since the 2013 British Open at Muirfield, though he extended a record last year by competing in his 24th consecutive team - Ryder Cup and Presidents Cup - for the Americans. He also challenged Dustin Johnson down the stretch in a pair of World Golf Championships, losing to him on the 18th hole in the final of Dell Match Play. That moved the 23-year-old Spaniard to No. He won at Torrey Pines in January, and then added victories in the Irish Open and the DP World Tour Championship in Dubai last month. Rahm, who graduated from Arizona State in four years despite not speaking English when he arrived on campus, turned pro last summer and earned his PGA Tour in just four tournaments. Koski was the first agent at Lagardere who recruited Rahm while he played for the Sun Devils. "I am really excited to continue working with the team at Lagardere Sports and get the 2018 season underway." "Coach Mickelson will always be important to me and has done many good things to support my career, and I wish him and Phil well in their new partnership," Rahm said in a statement. and Jamie Evans in Europe handling most of the daily affairs. Rahm now will be represented by Steve Loy, the president of golf at Lagardere, with Jeff Koski in the U.S. That gave Tim Mickelson two jobs at the seven tournaments that Rahm and Mickelson played - a caddie for the five-time major champion, the agent for one of golf’s rising stars. Mickelson and Jim "Bones" Mackay parted ways this summer after 25 years, and Mickelson used his brother for the rest of the year.
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