![]() He takes on players half his age and relishes beating them, getting into their pockets in money games. And when the calendar kept turning, Mickelson never gave in to the clock on the wall, instead choosing to fight back and stay relevant. He is the first player in his 50s to claim one of golf's grandest prizes. To say anyone saw this coming at the beginning of the week would be like spitting into the Kiawah Island wind. Rickie Fowler, 18 years younger and a frequent playing companion of Mickelson's, took in the euphoric scene in front of the Ocean Course clubhouse late Sunday as thousands of fans chanted the PGA champion's name. "It's the same way I talk about Tiger they're both golf nerds,'' Fowler said. "I got to spend some time with Phil the week before he went to and he was just playing a bunch of golf. Because we were in carts, you could play as many holes as you wanted. And he still has the drive to go and chase. Mickelson surpassed Julius Boros as the oldest major champion. Boros was 48 when he won the PGA Championship in 1968. at 45 was the oldest to win The Open, during Andrew Johnson's presidency. Jack Nicklaus was considered ancient when he won the Masters at 46 in 1986. And Hale Irwin, in the tournament on a special exemption, won the U.S. Davis Love III was the last player to win on the PGA Tour past the age of 50 - and he did that six years ago. The game is too deep, the young players too seasoned, the physical skills too demanding for AARP members to remain factors. And yet here is Phil, nearly a decade after going into the World Golf Hall of Fame, finishing above them all, including Brooks Koepka, the four-time major winner who seemed poised to steal Mickelson's brilliance. "Worked harder is the deal," Mickelson said. "I just had to work harder physically to be able to practice as long as I wanted to, and I've had to work a lot harder to be able to maintain focus throughout a round. That's been the biggest challenge of late. I've never been driven by exterior things. I've always been intrinsically motivated because I love to compete. I love having opportunities to play against the best at the highest level. That's what drives me, and I think the belief that I could still do it inspired me to work harder. ![]() I just didn't see why it couldn't be done. ![]() Mickelson's 1-over-par 73 on Sunday had its moments of glory and gory. He holed a sand shot on the fifth for a birdie he hit his second shot into the water on the 13th and made bogey. He made a poor chip on the third and took bogey but he blasted a drive on the seventh to set up a birdie. He began the day with a 1-shot lead over Koepka, seemed doomed after a shaky first hole that saw him lose the advantage, then took it back on the next hole. There were five multishot swings between Mickelson, Koepka and Louis Oosthuizen during the first 10 holes.īut ultimately, Mickelson prevailed, helped by the fact that his closest pursuers were unable to avoid the pitfalls that the Ocean Course presented all week. He even overcame two equipment malfunctions, one that saw his beloved 2-wood need to be replaced after the face caved in while he was practicing Saturday night. Mickelson's 2-iron suffered the same fate while he was warming up Sunday. So he went to a 4-wood instead, one that he used several times off the tee. The result was a nervy final round that saw him hit 7 of 14 fairways and 11 of 18 greens while finding success off the tee and in his iron game. Mickelson hadn't finished among the top 20 going back 17 events to last summer. "When you don't expect them, they are one of a kind,'' said Steve Loy, Mickelson's coach at Arizona State and his longtime agent. I knew he was going to win more than one major. To come back and do this on this course, after we haven't had a great two years, it's heaven-sent. "This is maybe his greatest win because of the golf course, the venue, the odds against him. I told him in a text this morning, I said, 'Phil, I'm getting too old for this, but you aren't. Given where Mickelson was just a few weeks ago, this seemed like an impossible dream. #Flappy golf 2 improbable land hole 4 upgrade#.
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