U.S. Open: Thumbs, and scores, are up for Phil Mickelson
PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. — The fan’s shout from the gallery alongside the first hole was as heartfelt as it was weird: “Give us the thumb, Phil!”
For all the bitter acrimony between Phil Mickelson and the USGA, for all the you-can-look-but-you-better-not-touch teasing that the U.S. Open lays out for Mickelson, one connection remains true: no matter what the course, the gallery loves Phil — who finished Thursday at +1 — like nobody else.
Mickelson didn’t exactly give them much to cheer about on Thursday, burbling along at even par for the first 11 holes of the day. And then came the 400-yard par-4 No. 3, Mickelson’s 12th hole of the day, when he found himself inside the leather with a routine par putt. And then …
Good lord. Even you could have made that putt.
The jack — which Mickelson admitted after the round was the result of not concentrating tightly enough — was emblematic of a round in which everyone who’s anyone was going low at Pebble Beach. At the time Mickelson finished up, the course average score was 71.5 — which, if it held, would be the lowest average round in U.S. Open history. It was a day where staying still was going backward.
“I thought I played a lot better than I scored,” Mickelson said after the round. “Hopefully I’ll get better as the week goes on.”
Mickelson is a master at spotting an enemy and whipping up public sentiment against them, whether it’s Tom Watson at a Ryder Cup or the USGA every June. But a putt like that, he can’t rationalize away or shift blame; he’s got to take it and move on.
That putt was only the ugliest manifestation of what, for Mickelson, has to go down as a tremendous missed opportunity. On a day when Pebble Beach was playing as cool and easy as it ever does in a U.S. Open setup, with soft greens, a low marine layer, and undetectable wind, Mickelson missed his chance to go low.
“This was a chance to get a few under par,” Mickelson said, “and I just didn’t do it.”
At 48 — he’ll turn 49 on Sunday — Mickelson knows he’s running out of chances to claim that career Grand Slam. This might well be his best, last chance, and he gave the field six strokes and counting.
One positive: Mickelson and the USGA could call a brief cease-fire in their ongoing war. The greens on Thursday were fast but fair, and even Mickelson couldn’t complain about them, even if he didn’t exactly go full-throated on his endorsement of the USGA:
“There’s three more days and you don’t know how the weather’s going to be,” he said, “but it seems like they did a heck of a job.”
So what about Friday? Mickelson isn’t in danger of missing the cut just yet, but to have any chance to win the tournament, he has to go far lower than he did on Thursday. He knows it, and he’s got somewhat of a plan.
“I’ve played this course for so many years, and I know how to shoot under par on it,” Mickelson said. “I just need to shoot something in the 60s and I’ll be good for the weekend. I had a lot of good putts that I didn’t make.”
Mickelson took plenty of time to sign autographs and even pose for selfies after his round. He’ll win every time out with the fans. But his chances to go low and get that last major on the Slam list are fading fast, and he can’t afford many more days like this one.
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Jay Busbee is a writer for Yahoo Sports. Contact him at jay.busbee@yahoo.com or find him on Twitter or on Facebook.
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