Phil Mickelson found a few fans to celebrate with after winning his first World Golf Championships event on Sunday at Doral.
Mar. 23, 2009
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PHIL'S FOCUS: Phil Mickelson's struggles the first few weeks of the season shouldn't have been that much of a surprise, considering he spent just two weeks practicing in the offseason prior to making his debut at the FBR Open in February.
All week at Doral, Mickelson -- now second in the FedExCup standings and within a 3-iron of supplanting Tiger Woods as the No. 1 player in the world -- talked about how his game was rounding into form for the Masters. And that was before he won the World Golf Championships-CA Championship on Sunday.
Earlier in the week Mickelson said it would be "cool" to win his first World Golf Championships event. No doubt it was, especially in Miami and especially since he did it while battling a virus, heat exhaustion and a pesky opponent. It seems apparent now that while it was cool to win along the way, the plan was to be ready for Augusta National. He's certainly ready -- and evidently he's ahead of schedule. -- Brian Wacker
| The Top Three |
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| • Early review of Tiger's video game Click |
| • For the kids: 18 holes for $2 Click |
| • Stenson Strip photo gallery Click |
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TRACKING TIGER: Tiger Woods equaled his worst-ever finish in a World Golf Championships event when he shot a pair of 68s on the weekend to finish in a tie for ninth at Doral. But things got better as the week went on for the world's No. 1 player.
Starting the final round 9 shots back, it was obvious that Tiger wasn't going to add a 16th World Golf Championships title to his resume, but he seemed to round back into form over the weekend. So don't be surprised if Woods notches career victory 66 in his next scheduled start.
The putts that we are used to seeing Tiger stare into the hole just didn't fall at the Blue Monster this week. But we saw enough signs of the old Tiger and we will undoubtedly see more. -- John Maginnes
RORY'S STORY: A third PGA TOUR event equaled a third consecutive top-20 finish for 19-year-old Rory McIlroy. McIlroy, who entered the CA Championship as the 16th-ranked player in the world, strung together rounds of 68-66-72-73 to finish in a tie for 20th at 9 under.
While McIlroy hasn't won yet on TOUR -- cut him some slack, it's been three events -- his all-around game has been nothing short of extraordinary. Several teens have made appearances on the TOUR over the years, but few -- aside from Tiger Woods -- have displayed the overall talent, confidence and poise of McIlroy.
Yes, it's still a little early to induct McIlroy into the World Golf Hall of Fame but the point is he's living up to his billing, which doesn't happen a whole lot in the demanding game of golf. -- T.J. Auclair
THE WORLD STAGE: The golf Sunday at Doral was certainly engaging. The two primary combatants left nothing on the Blue Monster's lush green fairways and in the end, given his health issues, Phil Mickelson's 36th victory was one of his most remarkable.
What I will remember most, though, are players like Prayad Marksaeng, the Thai veteran who came from abject poverty to earn millions playing the game he loved. Prayad quit school in the fourth grade and worked three jobs to help his parents feed his 11 brothers and sisters. His first clubs were sticks of bamboo that had pieces of bicycle tires for the grip. Prayad, who tied for 13th at Doral, is now ranked No. 51 in the world.
The World Golf Championships were designed to bring the world's best players together on a regular basis, and the caliber of competition has been impressive. One of the other things the global series does, though, is teach us to keep an open mind and look beyond the boundaries of the United States to find some of the best practitioners of the game. -- Helen Ross
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| Stock up |
Tiger Woods: He didn't make a putt the entire week and still closed with back-to-back 68s to climb into the top 10. If the biggest worry about Woods now is that his putts aren't falling, then there's little to worry about with the world's No. 1 player, who said he's hitting it better than he has in a long time.
FedExCup rank: 102 (152 last week) |
Jim Furyk: The Sunday charge put on by Furyk was reminiscent of the same one he put on in 2000 when he rallied from six back with seven to play to win. The only differences this time were a) he didn't win and b) he shot a back-nine 31, missing a birdie putt on 18, compared to the 30 he shot nine years ago to beat Franklin Langham.
FedExCup rank: 26 (88 last week) |
Nick Watney: He's already won once this season and was a couple of bunker shots away from another on Sunday. After an impressive 2007 season, Watney took a step back last year, but he appears to have regained his competitive form this year. If you're looking for an early sleeper at Augusta, here you go.
FedExCup rank: 3 (5 last week) |
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| Stock down |
Kenny Perry: A second-round 64 had Perry sitting pretty, but he was all over the place on the weekend. Perry shot rounds of 71-72 to close and Sunday stumbled home with three crushing bogeys over his last six holes to tumble out of contention.
FedExCup rank: 4 (2 last week) |
Vijay Singh: Three rounds in the 70s had Singh continuing to look like a player who, at 46 years old, is having trouble coming back from some nagging injuries. Since his return, he's produced two missed cuts, an early exit at the Accenture Match Play Championship and a T53.
FedExCup rank: 116 (115 last week) |
Anthony Kim: Whether it's jetlag from all that globe-trotting, or perhaps the shoulder that knocked him out of one start, Kim -- outside of his season-opening T2 at the Mercedes-Benz Championship -- isn't flashing the same form he did last year during his breakthrough season.
FedExCup rank: 31 (28 last week) |
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| A Quick 18 |
| Front Nine | Back Nine |
| Phil Mickelson wasn't as sick as flu-stricken Michael Jordan in the 1997 NBA Finals or a vomiting Pete Sampras in the 1996 U.S. Open, but he didn't eat a real meal since Thursday, was treated for heat exhaustion and dehydration the night before the final round of the CA Championship and didn't get out of bed until 1:30 p.m. on Sunday, just over an hour before his final-round tee time. | The Verizon Heritage, the week after the Masters, is shaping up to have a pretty strong field. TOUR winners Dustin Johnson, Y.E. Yang, Pat Perez and Mark Wilson all just committed, joining Boo Weekley, Davis Love III, Justin Leonard, Stewart Cink, Tim Clark, Rory McIlroy, Paul Casey, D.J. Trahan, Lucas Glover and Bill Haas. |
| If Nick Watney can continue to putt this well, he's going to be on a lot of future leaderboards because he does everything else so well. Don't be surprised to see him on future Presidents or Ryder Cup teams, either. "I think he's going to be a real asset to our team squad on the U.S. Team events," Mickelson said. | GOLF CHANNEL's Rich Lerner spent some time with Greg Norman and Chris Evert for a future story last week and said that Norman's become quite the tennis player the last couple of years. When he mentioned that to Norman, the Shark had a classic return volley: "Not only do I have a great instructor, but I get to sleep with her when the lesson's over!"
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| You can't help but root for Watney, who is quickly proving nice guys don't finish last. Quiet, shy, polite, nice. Whatever of those adjectives you want to use in describing the former Fresno State star, all of them would be correct. As one colleague put it: "He's still breaking out of his shell." Dont confuse that for laid-back, though. There's a fire in his boyish eyes. | Seattle native Fred Couples will serve as honorary chairman of the 2010 U.S. Senior Open, to be played at Sahalee Country Club in Sammamish, Wash. In related news, attendance records are already being predicted. Seriously, there's no better guy for this role than fan-favorite Freddie, who will be the perfect ambassador. |
| Another player drawing high praise this week was Rory McIlroy, who finished T20. Said Tiger Woods: "Certainly he has the talent. We can all see it: The way he hits the golf ball, the way he putts, the way he can chip, get up-and-down. He has all of the components to be the best player in the world." | Should be a fun week for lens maker Transitions, the first-year sponsor at this week's TOUR event in Tampa, Fla. The company is using the tournament to promote healthy sight. And the field's pretty good too: Furyk, Perry and Japanese teen sensation Ryo Ishikawa, among others. |
| In 12 TOUR events this season, we've had 11 different winners and only one 2008 winner able to successfully defend his title -- Phil Mickelson at the Northern Trust Open. Of those winners, only two are in their 20s, while eight are in their 30s and two are in their 40s. Five of those wins have come by just a single stroke. | Previews of the video game Tiger Woods '10 are starting to roll in (see one for yourself in our Links area above). It might sound like a company line, but the latest version of the long running game brought to you by Woods and the TOUR really does look fantastic. If nothing else, it gives you a chance to play courses you might never get the opportunity to otherwise. |
| Two years ago, Anthony Kim would have been enjoying South Beach a little too much while at Doral. This year, he took a pass on tickets to the Celtics-Heat game for treatment on some recent nagging injuries. He's also much happier to finally be on speedier greens. Translation: Expect A.K. (who's in this week's Stock Down) to start playing better.
| Michelle Wie, who is playing her first season as a member of the LPGA Tour, signed with IMG last week after recently parting ways with the William Morris Agency, where she went through three different agents. What's next for Wie? Hopefully some wins and less of a roller-coaster ride than her last few years have been.
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| You wouldn't know it by how he played at Doral -- four rounds in the 70s -- but Adam Scott feels better than he has physically and mentally in a "long, long time." He was perhaps more injured than he was letting on when he took time off to rehab his knee last month. But the frustration seems to be gone. | John Daly has apparently dropped 40 pounds and expects to be playing on the European Tour by late April, according to Daly's manager Bud Martin. Swing coach Rick Smith has also been working with Daly since before last year's PGA Championship. |
| One guy who doesn't feel so good right now is Boo Weekley. Watching him on the range, you could see the frustration dripping down his face. The "hoo-ra," as Weekley calls it, or extracurricular activities that go with his newfound celebrity, seem to be wearing on him a bit. So is a cranky putter. | I ran into Alonzo Mourning during Friday's second round of the CA Championship, where he was following his good friend Tiger Woods. Though he's now retired, Mourning, who has performed at various functions with Woods, is still incredibly popular in the Miami area for all the charity work he does. |
| Luke Donald still appears to be bothered by a sore wrist, one he re-injured slightly during the Accenture Match Play Championship three weeks ago in Tucson. Donald, who said he only feels pain when he's swinging poorly and has to flip his wrists, did say, however, that because it's a scar tissue issue, he really shouldn't be able to injure it again.
| What do Stewart Cink, Parker McLachlin and Natalie Gulbis have in common? They're all on Twitter. Cink was Twittering on the social-networking site from Miami, where he talked about, among other things, the Celtics-Heat game and the sushi and Argentine restaurants he went to.
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| The Forward Spin |
On Sunday at Doral, Phil Mickelson won with a total of 19 under. Don't expect that same winning score this week at the Transitions Championship.
The 7,340-yard, par-71 Copperhead Course at Innisbrook Resort is one of the toughest courses on the PGA TOUR. Last year, it ranked as the fifth toughest among the courses that the TOUR visits on an annual basis. Sean O'Hair won last year with a score of 4 under; just nine players finished under par for the tournament.
With the way O'Hair is playing right now -- he's been top 25 in each of his six starts, and already has three top 10s -- it wouldn't be a surprise to see him successfully defend his title this week. |
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PGATOUR.COM'S Brian Wacker wrote Stock Up and Stock Down, A Quick 18 and Forward Spin.
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