His putting is not sharp. He 4 putted from 12'7". He's had two other putts, one for birdie and one for par lip out. It's his 4th competitive round since February. But continue to bash when you couldn't come close to beating him ever!TheStorm said:
Boy, Mickelson really looks good out there today...
Today is his birthday so I think they have been singing Happy Birthday to him every hole. He probably should have played 2 events before the U. S. Open. Ball striking has been pretty good. Putting has been awful. Some of his misses from fairly close range have been bad. Of course it's U. S. Open greens in the afternoon so they are not going to be great like they are in the morning.Bell Tower Grey said:
I was pleased that he was well received from the first tee forward. He's meant so much to the game over his career, he deserves that.
It bothers me that his putting has declined so much over the last while. I'm sure some of it is mental, but I have to wonder if other physical medical issues are contributing to it?
Hopefully he pulls it together enough the rest of the day and tomorrow to make the cut.
I posted this about 10 seconds before he missed that 5 footer for birdie by about 6 inches to the left... other than that I haven't been watching that closely. If he's made a recovery since then, congrats... and good luck going forward.TheStorm said:
Boy, Mickelson really looks good out there today...
Well he followed his birdie with his worst drive of the day. I think he ended up with a double but it might be only a bogey. The shottracker is not always right. When he finally got it back in the fairway he almost holed the wedge shot.Bell Tower Grey said:
Yeah, and he did just pick up a short par three birdie, so maybe that will get him going.
Lots of guys missing putts, especially turning right at the cup. If they don't get rain, those greens will be hell by Sunday.
He will be ok. He is just not sharp. He hit a beautiful shot right down the middle of the fairway right after that. If he can maybe get two back and no more bogeys, then go 2 or 3 under tomorrow, he will most likely make the cut. It's rough out there now. A few guys are really playing well but there is a lot of struggling too.Bell Tower Grey said:
It was a double.
The guy looks like a beaten man out there. I feel bad for him.
Will be interesting to see for the several guys who get huge $$ out of LIV just to play -- do their games falter? I guess they still have the majors to play for, but otherwise, there is no need to win at LIV, just play.TheStorm said:
He doesn't need to play well anymore. He just needs to be out there for the photo-op to earn his blood money... and I'm sure that he is very comfortable with that decision... all he has to do is go through the motions from here.
Huh? Then why has he basically shunned the Senior Tour completely? Went out and won a few tournaments on it right after he turned 50, and then basically hasn't been back since.Bell Tower Grey said:
Because he has new championships to win on the Senior Tour. That's why.
I personally hope that they don't even waste any time on him...Bell Tower Grey said:
He's two over today through 15, and plus 10 overall. Hope he gives a good exit interview.
He won't be playing on the Champions Tour much in the near future in my opinion. He has already dominated when he has played there winning 4 of the 6 he has played in. He still has enough game to compete with everybody. He was just rusty this week. If he shoots that 73 yesterday he would probably make the cut. His putting and ball striking were just not up to snuff for a U. S. Open. He needed one more tournament under his belt.Bell Tower Grey said:
I think with the things he has going on in his life right now that he'll start playing more senior events, especially their majors. Ego is a hell of a thing, and he certainly has one. The senior events would give him a way to gradually bow out gracefully over time, especially if he manages to win a few.
While i agree with you overall that Phil doesnt need to go to the senior tour full time at any point, he is certainly declining in his game, even before this layoff. The PGA win last year is a massive outlier as i'm pretty sure its his only top 20 in a major, PGA tour, or WGC event since 2019. So even before his sabbatical he wasn't really playing like the Phil we all loved that battled Tiger in the 2000's and 2010's.DrummerboyWolf said:He won't be playing on the Champions Tour much in the near future in my opinion. He has already dominated when he has played there winning 4 of the 6 he has played in. He still has enough game to compete with everybody. He was just rusty this week. If he shoots that 73 yesterday he would probably make the cut. His putting and ball striking were just not up to snuff for a U. S. Open. He needed one more tournament under his belt.Bell Tower Grey said:
I think with the things he has going on in his life right now that he'll start playing more senior events, especially their majors. Ego is a hell of a thing, and he certainly has one. The senior events would give him a way to gradually bow out gracefully over time, especially if he manages to win a few.
His two birdies near the end of his round were long putts. One off the green from about 42 feet and then another from about 57 feet. He was even par his first three holes and then hit a great second shot that was right at the pin, but plugged on the upslope. Balls never plug at the U.S. Open unless you have had a whole lot of rain. He got frustrated made a bad putt then missed the par putt.
He is not done by any means if he want to keep playing. 5 rounds(2 at the U. S. Open) after a 4 month layoff is not a true indicator.
He was in a little slump, but most of it was putting woes. 2018 or 19 he was in the top 5 in strokes gained putting. He always has been a tinkerer, went with the DeChambeau method for a while, and some other things.jadawson said:While i agree with you overall that Phil doesnt need to go to the senior tour full time at any point, he is certainly declining in his game, even before this layoff. The PGA win last year is a massive outlier as i'm pretty sure its his only top 20 in a major, PGA tour, or WGC event since 2019. So even before his sabbatical he wasn't really playing like the Phil we all loved that battled Tiger in the 2000's and 2010's.DrummerboyWolf said:He won't be playing on the Champions Tour much in the near future in my opinion. He has already dominated when he has played there winning 4 of the 6 he has played in. He still has enough game to compete with everybody. He was just rusty this week. If he shoots that 73 yesterday he would probably make the cut. His putting and ball striking were just not up to snuff for a U. S. Open. He needed one more tournament under his belt.Bell Tower Grey said:
I think with the things he has going on in his life right now that he'll start playing more senior events, especially their majors. Ego is a hell of a thing, and he certainly has one. The senior events would give him a way to gradually bow out gracefully over time, especially if he manages to win a few.
His two birdies near the end of his round were long putts. One off the green from about 42 feet and then another from about 57 feet. He was even par his first three holes and then hit a great second shot that was right at the pin, but plugged on the upslope. Balls never plug at the U.S. Open unless you have had a whole lot of rain. He got frustrated made a bad putt then missed the par putt.
He is not done by any means if he want to keep playing. 5 rounds(2 at the U. S. Open) after a 4 month layoff is not a true indicator.
Full details. 👇https://t.co/JGrVCKW0ei
— Golf Digest (@GolfDigest) June 21, 2022
Interesting. Apparently the PGA is a little worried about LIV Golf. I believe this is something that Mickelson had been wanting for a long time.Wolfer79 said:
Big changes to the PGA Tour schedule have been announced starting in 2023.Full details. 👇https://t.co/JGrVCKW0ei
— Golf Digest (@GolfDigest) June 21, 2022
We have already seen that. Phil, for the most part was a media darling because his press conferences were always fun. From everything I saw and heard, Phil still had most of his fans out there.wilmwolf80 said:
Golf media was extra salty this morning. They were loving Brooks when he was going back and forth with Bryson and giving them tons of content, now he's a villain. Will be interesting when a guy who is a true media darling finally crosses over to the dark side.
Ok got you!wilmwolf80 said:
New school golf media has never liked Phil. No laying up, Kyle Porter, Brendan Porath, that whole clique has always been critical of him. The fans like him, and his move wasn't to change that. The guys I'm looking at are the "young" guys like Spieth, Thomas, Fowler, Dahmen, Scheffler, Rahm, Rory. They've all proclaimed PGA for life, but if or when one of them bolts, that's what I'm interested in seeing.
910wolf said:
This LIV stuff continues to bum me out more and more. In no way is this beneficial to golf fans.
910wolf said:
This LIV stuff continues to bum me out more and more. In no way is this beneficial to golf fans.
