OAKMONT, Pa. — Whatever Phil Mickelson did, in this life or a past one, to offend the USGA, the U.S. Open and the gods who control America’s tournament … they have most certainly exacted their revenge. And they’ve sent him into U.S. Open retirement with one last kick in the teeth.
Mickelson, who’s finished second an astounding six different times in this tournament, has strongly suggested that this would be his last attempt at completing a career grand slam. And while a victory this week at Oakmont seemed well out of reach, a decent showing seemed … well, plausible, at least.
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On Thursday, before sparse crowds that were a shadow of the swarms that once followed him, Mickelson finished at +4, a surprisingly reasonable score given the conditions. On Friday, he followed that up with 14 even more impressive holes — a two-birdie, two-bogey even-par run on a day when even the defending champion blew up.
But then, because Phil is Phil, he had to go and make it interesting. Sitting at +4, well inside the cut line of +7 with four holes to play, he double-bogeyed the 15th, then doubled the 17th, too. That left him standing on the tee at 18 needing a birdie to make the cut.
If you didn’t see it, you can imagine what happened next. Mickelson found the fairway on his drive, and then put his approach to within 15 feet. One more bit of Mickelson magic and he’d play the weekend.
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Oh, but you didn’t think it would be that easy, did you? The gods weren’t yet done with our Phil. As he and playing partners Cam Smith and Brian Harman circled their putts, lightning flashed off in the distance. And as Harman took forever to size up his putt, thunder boomed. Harman immediately stood up and began walking off the course, and Mickelson fixed him with a look that could melt iron. Mickelson and Harman’s caddy both spoke briefly to Harman, and soon afterward, the 2023 Open Champion putted away.
And then it was Mickelson’s turn. One putt to make the weekend. One putt to extend, or end, his U.S. Open career.
One further twist of the knife — because of Mickelson’s late tee time, the galleries were thin and the grandstands mostly empty. So there was no triumphant hail-and-farewell at the 18th for Mickelson like the one Arnold Palmer received when he played his final U.S. Open round in 1994 on this same course. There were “Go Phil!”s and “Go Lefty!”s, but nothing exceptional or memorable. The gallery didn’t appear to realize, or understand, that this would likely be Phil’s last run in the major that has tormented him for so long.
It was time to putt, and Mickelson breathed deep, drew the putter back, and rolled the ball toward the hole. For most of the 15 feet the ball traveled, it looked good, looked like Phil would play the weekend. And then, of course, because it had to, because Phil can’t have nice things at a U.S. Open, the ball swerved away. Inches from glory, once again.
Mickelson can be a maddening, infuriating player and human being to root for; he’s as responsible as anyone for the current schism in golf, and he all too often prizes his own glory over the good of the whole sport. But it’s impossible not to feel a twinge of sympathy for him, denied this prize again and again in the most ridiculous and, indeed, cruel ways. At some point with Phil, especially after seeing Rory McIlroy achieve his own life goal, you have to wonder, when is enough, enough?
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There’s no need to feel sorry for Mickelson in an absolute sense; he’s achieved wealth, fortune and (best we can tell) happiness … plus, much of his misfortune, and all of his current diminished standing, is self-inflicted. But there’s definitely a sense now that he’s suffered enough at the hands of the U.S. Open.
Maybe that’s why he opted not to speak after his round, politely declining the media’s request as he walked into the Oakmont clubhouse. He simply doesn’t have anything more left to give.
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