Host Phil Mickelson makes a 9 on one hole, matches worst round at The American Express
It was anything but the expected round for tournament host Phil Mickelson on Thursday at The American Express.
Mickelson, who has won the tournament twice and finished second as recently as 2019, may have shot himself completely out of contention Thursday on a course that he dominated in the 2019 performance. That year, Mickelson shot a 12-under 60 in the first round at La Quinta Country Club.
Thursday, Mickelson did almost the exact opposite, struggling early on the way to a 6-over 78, leaving him tied for last in the 156-player field with Austin Cook, who played the tougher Stadium Course at PGA West. The 78 matched the worst round he's shot in this event. He also shot 78 in the fifth round in 2007.
Not surprisingly, Mickelson declined to comment on his round after signing his scorecard and instead headed directly to the driving range.
Mickelson's game was never in rhythm Thursday, starting with a double-bogey 6 on the second hole where he had to hit a second tee shot after going out of bounds. But that was just the start for the reigning PGA Championship winner. On the par-4 eighth hole, Mickelson pumped two drives out of bounds, finally finding the fairway with his third tee shot. The result was a quintuple-bogey 9, pushing him to 6-over for the round.
He played the remaining 10 holes in even par, with one birdie, one eagle on the par-5 13th and three bogeys.
Mickelson moves to the Nicklaus Tournament Course at PGA West for Friday's second round and will need to go low to give himself a chance to make the 54-hole cut. Since that second-place finish in 2019, Mickelson has missed the cut in the last two American Express events.
Defending champion
Si Woo Kim fired a solid 4-under 68 at La Quinta Country Club in defense of his 2021 American Express title, despite taking a double-bogey 6 on the eighth hole.
But Kim is far from the lowest score among the past champions of the desert tournament.
Jon Rahm’s 66 at La Quinta is the best among those past champions, while Adam Long, the 2019 winner, matched Kim’s 68, also at La Quinta. Pat Perez, the 2009 winner, finished with a 69 at La Quinta, with Jason Dufner, the 2016 champion, shooting 70 at the Stadium Course.
Late bloomer
Jon Rahm was ranked as the No. 1 player in college golf in his time at Arizona State, but looking back, Rahm wonders a bit how that happened.
“To be honest, I was not a good ball-striker until senior year of college,” Rahm said. “Like I've always said, I was a competitor, so I would go out there whether I was hitting it good or bad and just try and post the best score I could, period, because that's golf. You go out there and shoot the lowest score, doesn't matter how you do it.
“And it was senior year when things started clicking and I realized and learned certain things about my swing that I had to do, know about my game, and that's when I started becoming a really good ball-striker. But the confidence has always been there., I've always had that belief in myself,” Rahm added.
Section champ
Kyle Mendoza is in the field of The American Express this week, but not through a sponsor’s exemption. Mendoza, from Oceanside and The Farms Golf Club in Rancho Santa Fe, is the reigning section champion of the PGA of Southern California. That victory allows Mendoza an exemption into The American Express. Along with the best players in the world. Mendoza played in the last group off the 10th tee of the Pete Dye Stadium Course at PGA West, playing with pro Kurt Kitayama.
Hole in one!
It's the most exciting shot in golf and it happened on the 15th hole at La Quinta Country Club on Thursday. Harry Higgs, a 30-year-old American, aced the hole with a 5-iron from 199 yards. It was part of a 6-under round of 66 which has him tied for 13th.
More television
While the tournament is being broadcast four hours a day on Golf Channel, The American Express is also part of the new coverage by ESPN+. That coverage, which includes four different streams showing play or featured holes or featured groups, begins at 9:30 a.m. and runs through the entire day’s play. That means ESPN+, which requires a subscription, will have more than 4,300 hours of tour coverage this year.
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: American Express: Phil Mickelson makes a 9 on one hole in tough opening round
