SAN DIEGO — Bubba Watson tempered his celebration when he rolled in a 12-foot birdie putt on the final hole Sunday at Torrey Pines, knowing Phil Mickelson could make eagle on the par-5 closing hole to catch him.
It played out just as Watson imagined, right down to Mickelson’s caddie tending the pin on the eagle attempt. There was just one twist — Mickelson wasn’t near the green.
In a surprising decision, Mickelson laid up on the 18th hole and had to settle for a birdie when his lob wedge from 72 yards stopped 4 feet short.
The winner of the Farmers Insurance Open turned out to be Watson, who made clutch putts on the final two holes for a 5-under-par 67 and a 16-under 272. He was sitting in the scoring trailer at the end, oblivious to how the final hole played out.
“I don’t know what he made on the hole,” Watson said. “I just know that I won, because that’s all I was worried about. If he makes it, I’m getting ready for a playoff.”
So ended a bizarre week. A lefty won at Torrey Pines, just not the one Mickelson’s hometown gallery wanted to see. Mickelson opened himself up to criticism on the final hole because he played it safe.
As for Tiger Woods? His five-tournament winning streak at Torrey Pines ended with hardly anyone noticing. Woods was done two hours before the finish, and his 75 put him in a tie for 44th. He had never finished outside the top 10 here.
Mickelson offered no apologies for laying up. His lie in the left rough was 228 yards from the flag. A hybrid would have come out heavy and gone into the water. He said his 3-wood would have come out hot and gone well over the green. Mickelson figured his best chance at eagle was a 64-degree wedge from the fairway. He tapped in for birdie and a 69.
“Bubba played some terrific golf,” Mickelson said. “I did what I thought would be enough, and it just wasn’t. Bubba played too good. He made great shot after great shot, and made putt after putt. It was a wonderful round for him.”
