Augusta, Ga. – How do you discern the difference between a very good golfer and a major champion? For so long, the answer seemed destined to dance agonizingly away from Phil Mickelson’s grasp, the left-hander unable – or unwilling – to concede that the solution involved more than possessing immense talent.
“I’ve practiced hard, but maybe I didn’t practice the right way or on the right things,” Mickelson said Sunday shortly after shooting a final-round, 3-under-par 69 to win his second Masters championship in the past three years. “It’s taken me time and years of seeing what’s worked well and what hasn’t.”
Now having honed his routine, Mickelson has emerged as, if not a credible threat to Tiger Woods’ dominance, at least one of the steadiest performers in golf. After going 0-for-42 in majors, Mickelson has won three of the past nine, with the past two – he also took the 2005 PGA Championship – in succession.
A birdie on the 18th hole lifted South African Tim Clark into sole possession of second place at 5-under 283, two shots behind Mickelson. There was a five-way tie for third, a quintet that included defending champion Woods, Fred Couples and Retief Goosen.
That the big boppers also made room for relatively short hitters Chad Campbell and Jose Maria Olazabal spoke to the ultimate success of the tournament – in fact, the only people happier at Augusta than Mickelson and his family were chairman Hootie Johnson and the gatekeepers at Augusta National.
While the beefed-up 7,445-yard course proved more Georgia bulldog than Southern genteel, it was more than accommodating to anyone capable of doing Bobby Jones proud by controlling his shots.
“If it’s firm and fast, it’s fair for all,” Clark said.
Coming on the heels of his 13-shot victory at the BellSouth Classic, Mickelson also became the first player since Sandy Lyle in 1988 to follow a PGA Tour win with a Masters triumph in back-to-back weeks. When Mickelson won the former event by using two drivers, there was at least a little eye-rolling and references to the golfer’s penchant for the unconventional.
But Mickelson has learned that being adventurous doesn’t really work on the course during major championships.
“I don’t think he played crazy golf,” Sunday playing partner Couples said of Mickelson’s previous lack of success. “When your eye sees a shot and you hit it, it’s a lot of fun. But when you don’t, you know you’ve made a mistake and everyone wants to criticize it. And when you try to do it in a major, it can backfire pretty quickly.”
Couples’ words were merely an extension of the support he offered Mickelson all day. Former Ryder and Presidents Cup teammates, the two often fist-bumped and chatted amiably throughout the afternoon. But Couples helped out even more by falling victim to a miserable day on the greens.
Earlier in the season, Couples joked that his putting resembled a weightlifter’s “clean and jerk” more than a fluid stroke. That proved dishearteningly true Sunday. The 46-year-old missed four putts from within 5 feet that could have made him the oldest winner in tournament history.
“I can work on putting all day, but you have to hit them to the right spots, and I can’t do that for 72 holes anymore,” Couples said. “If Phil had putted for me, I truly feel that I would have won the tournament at 9- or 10-under.”
Woods also left the stately premises lamenting his putting. In quest of his 11th major and fifth green jacket, Woods said he hit the ball “better than I have in years,” but a cluster of misses throughout the round left him unable to truly muster a spirited defense.
When he left the 18th green, his caddie, Steve Williams, tossed Woods’ putter to Woods’ agent, Mark Steinberg. Steinberg then pantomimed cracking it across his knee, which prompted Williams to say, “Yeah, break it.” Not much later, Woods admitted that the offending blade would be “fixed” later.
“I putted obscenely,” Woods said. “It was so frustrating because I felt so in control of my ball from tee to green.”
Staff writer Anthony Cotton can be reached at 303-820-1292 or acotton@denverpost.com.
