Phil Mickelson Hints at Retirement
In an interview posted by Bloomberg on X, Phil Mickelson hinted at an upcoming retirement. Stating that he was 53 now and being truthful, he said his career was towards its end. Being one of golf’s greats including six major championship wins, one could notice that the words of self reflection did not come easily as he seemed to struggle to get the right words out. One might imagine anyone who has competed for over 30 years at the top tier in golf, might also struggle to say those words aloud as it might seeming relinquish a small competitive advantage.
Mickelson then went on to talk briefly about the future. He says he wants to get more involved in helping others enjoy the game of golf. He talked about a few things that have brought him fulfillment and enjoyment over the years including the solitude, time with family and friends and the competition.
Looking Back at a Few of the Greatest Moments
It’s not possible to capture all the truly great moments of Phil’s career. I mean, how do you do that with a career that spans over 30 years and is validated by 57 professional wins and 6 major championships. More than ever, major championships are the foundation of measurement to compare golfers over the years and see how they stack up. With 6 major wins, Phil stands in the top 12 of all time. Beside him are the likes of Nick Faldo and Lee Trevino. Looking back though, I could pretty quickly write down five moments over the course of his career that stand out and paint a picture of a career quite well done.
Phil Mickelson Wins PGA Tour event as an Amateur
As a junior and amateur at Arizona State, a 20-year old Mickelson outplayed the games most hardened pros winning the 1991 Northern Telecom Open by a shot. What was a foreshadowing of the excitement and drama that has made Phil so relatable, Phil had an up and down final round. It was written best back in 1991 in the LA Times saying Phil Mickelson escaped the chill embrace of a snowman in the desert and, with birdies on two of the last three holes, gained a little piece of golf history on Sunday.
Phil Wins His First Major at the Masters in 2004
Phil’s first major championship win did not come quickly. He was one of many good players who get the dreaded “best player to not win a major” title. Well, a players ability to achieve success in spite of the mounting pressure and scrutiny is certainly what makes a player great versus good. In 2004, Phil proved he was up to find a way to overcome and elevate his career to greatness.
Phil was in his 13th year as a professional as he made his way to Augusta in 2004. At this point, he had three runner-up finishes in major championships. Two were in the US Open and one was in the PGA Championship.
The 2004 Masters, like most, came down to a back nine duel on Sunday. It turned into one of the greatest moments in Masters history. It was between Ernie Els of South Africa and Phil Mickelson. Despite making two eagles in the final round, Els couldn’t pull away from Mickelson. Phil birdied the 12th, 13th, 14th and 16th holes getting to eight under (-8) and was tied with Els going into the last hole of the tournament. Mickelson hit his second into the 18th hole leaving himself about 25 feet down to the hole. Then this happened.
“The Shot” on the 13th at Augusta to Win a Third Masters
Going into 2010 master’s week, Phil was now a 3-time major winner. He had won a PGA Championship at Baltusrol in 2005 birdieing the final hole. He also had a walk away win in 2006 at the Masters for his second green jacket.
That week all the best of the best were atop the leaderboard and contending. Day one saw Fred Couples atop the leaderboard. Going into the final round, Lee Westwood maintained his lead over Phil by one with other big names including Couples and Tiger Woods looking for Sunday charge.
Phil Birdied the par-3 12th to take a two-shot lead. Off the tee on the par-5 13th hole, he hooked his tee shot up into the pine trees and pine straw. He was 207 yards out, on pine straw, and had to hit a small gap between the pines. Even with a two shot lead, Phil being Phil decided to go for the green in two. What resulted was one of the boldest shots in masters history and arguably the greatest shot he hit in his career. That birdie gave him the momentum needed to make two more birdies down the stretch. Phil secured his 3rd green jacket, his 4th major championship and what Jim Nantz dubbed a win for the family.
Winning The Open Championship in 2013
Due to his style of play and above average ball flight, it was generally assumed that The Open Championship would be Mickelson’s toughest major to win. Even Phil himself later stated that he himself never knew if he would win this major but that it was something he’d hoped to achieve.
There was a glimmer of what might be the week before at the Scottish Open. Mickelson fired -17 and won the tournament in a playoff. The 142nd playing of The Open Championship was played at the ancient links at Murifield Golf Club. For the week, Phil played well, but hadn’t cracked the top 10 at the halfway mark. Going into the final round, he found himself tied for 9th and 5 shots back of the leader Lee Westwood. Tiger Woods, Adam Scott and Henrik Stenson also stood between him and the Claret Jug.
As the round unfolded, Phil birdied the 13th hole to get back to even par for the week. He followed that with a birdie at the 14th to take the tournament lead for the first time all week. He would go on to birdie 4 of the last 6 holes including a birdie on the 18th to claim the Claret Jug. Phil called it probably the best round of his life.
Becoming Golf’s Oldest Major Champion Winning the PGA Championship in 2021
The 2021 PGA Championship was played at the diabolical Kiawah Island Ocean Course. At this time in his career, Phil was 50 years old and had last won back in 2019 at Pebble Beach. His last major championship was now 8 years ago.
The favorites going into the week were Rory McIlroy, Justin Thomas and Jon Rahm. However, Mickelson asserted his presence by the end of round two getting into a tie for the lead. Phil, never one to shy away from trying new equipment, brought a new look sporting sunglasses for the week.
Mickelson took a one shot lead over Brooks Koepka into the final round and never relinquished it. He ended up shooting six under for the week and won by two shots over Koepka and Louis Oosthuizen.
Watching the highlights that week it’s noticeable that Phil played a precision game that he was not always known for having in his bag. Doing that, he won his 6th major championship and is now the oldest person to win a major championship in history. One might say that it was the perfect bookend to compliment the other one that started all those years ago in the Arizona desert as a 20-year old amateur winning his first pro tournament on the PGA Tour.