Mickelson wins Pebble Beach closing out with a 64
By Brenden Anderson
2/12/12 Pebble Beach, Calif. -- Phil Mickelson stole the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am championship trophy from the grips of Charlie Wi finishing the final round with a 64 to end 17-under for his fourth tournament title. Wi started Sunday atop the leader board at 15-under after getting out of the gate strong with a 61 on Thursday then scoring 68 in rounds two and three.
Mickelson, whose grandfather used to caddy at the Pebble Beach tournament, started the day at 9-under in the second leader group paired with his nemisis Tiger Woods.
Mickelson got off to a quick start Sunday with 3 birdies and an eagle in the first 6 holes to make up a 6-stroke deficit and capture a two-stroke lead from Wi. Wi started the day 15-under but double-bogey on the first hole and then bogeyed holes five and six to loose the lead for good.
"When I eagled six is when I knew that I had put myself in a position to win," Mickelson stated. "Six hole is a very difficult hole for me off the tee. You got to capitalize on the par fives here. It's not the easiest thing to do."
Nothing was easy for Tiger today, who started the round 11-under and in stricking distance 4-strokes behind Wi. After Tiger scored a birdie on six in was all down hill with three straight bogeys. Eventually his game slipped right off the cliff into the Pacific Ocean shooting a 75 for the final round and dropping 11 places.
"As good as I felt about the greens yesterday is as bad as I feel about it today," Woods surmised. "I could not get comfortable. I couldn't get the putter to swing. I missed everything."
On the other hand, Mickelson couldn't miss. Once Tiger bogeyed 7, 8 and 9 he was no longer in contention and Phil just needed to stay aggressive and maintain the lead over Wi. He sunk an eagle and 6 birdies over the round, including a birdie on 18 to end with a bang, 8-under for the day for his 40th PGA win.
"I've always enjoyed playing with Phil," Tiger acknowledged. "We were in a position today that we needed to go get Charlie. We were four back, had to get him and Phil did."
Mickelson needed every shot as Wi, who finished 15-under, made a last ditch effort leaving birdies on the the last three holes, but it was to much to overcome after digging himself a hole with a 39 on the front nine.
Mickelson has been stemming the tide as Tiger's magic has been fading; Mickelson is feeling more confidence going into the 2012 majors. Tiger, who hasn't won a PGA sancioned event in two year, drives Phil and lights a fire for him to perform.
"What (Tiger's) meant to the game over the past 15 years is just mind-boggling," Mickelson admitted. "Nobody has benefited more than myself for what Tiger has done for the game of golf. He's inspiring to play with. I love playing with him. The last 4 or 5 years he's brought out some of the best golf in me."
Pebble Beach, formerly the Bing Crosby Classic, had all the drama of a great finish with Mickelson and Tiger paired for their 30th time on a Sunday. This charity event that unites professionals, amateurs and celebrities and golf fans across three courses Pebble Beach, Monterey Peninsula, and Spyglass Hill over four days. With Tiger and all the celebrity this event has grown to a total prize money of $6.4M with Mickelson cashing in on $1,152,000 in the win.
"I'm also appreciative of this week, what the celebrities have done, starting with Bing Crosby bringing the tournament here,"Mickelson stated. "Because they bring notoriety and people into the game that we wouldn't reach otherwise."
No wonder Phil graciously thanks Tiger to push him, make him better and the sport bigger, he has over a million reasons to “appreciate” his rival. |
