Leaderboard: Moving day at the Masters

PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. – Tim Mickelson is seven years younger than his 48-year-old brother Phil. Having the advantage of youth, however, does not give him the advantage in flexibility. “His flexibility is really good,� Tim said. “It’s a lot better than mine, which is sad.� Phil’s flexibility was certainly evident in his video commercial last year, which showcased a series of contortionist dance moves while wearing a button-down shirt. His flexibility is a huge reason why Phil has won twice in the past 11 months, including Monday’s two-hole finish at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am when he became the tournament’s oldest winner, three shots ahead of playing partner Paul Casey. It’s also why 2019 could turn into a hugely rewarding year, especially if Mickelson can return here in June to win the U.S. Open and complete the career slam. At an age where most pro golfers have suffered a dramatic fall-off, circling the date until they no longer have to compete against the youngsters, Mickelson obviously still has the game to maintain his lofty standards. Besides his two wins, he also tied for second last month at the Desert Classic. Thanks to improved eating habits and a dedication to keep his body pliable, he is having a renaissance moment. “It’s a lot more work and effort to play at this level,� Phil said. “I have believed for some time that if I play at my best, it will be good enough to win tournaments here. The challenge is getting myself to play my best. “It’s a lot more work off the course, it’s more time in the gym, it’s more time eating, it’s more time focusing – it’s all these things that go into it, and so it’s very gratifying to see the results and to finish it off the way I did.� Historically, noted Mickelson, players in their 40s see two things decline – putting and swing speed. His goal was to avoid both problems, and thus far he’s been successful. Mickelson ranked ninth in Strokes Gained: Putting in the 2015-16 season and was 13th last season. “The best it’s been in my 25, 28-year career,� he said of his putting. He’s also made a dramatic improvement in his swing speed. Two years ago, he ranked 91st in clubhead speed at 114.24 mph. Last year, he was 54th in 116.49. He arrived at Pebble Beach a week ago ranked 13th at 121.68. In Sunday’s final round, he averaged 118.656 mph, which was sixth in the field. The swing speed has given him extra distance and increased confidence off the tee. “It’s not really a secret,� Mickelson said. “It was nine months of hard work, and then overnight I was swinging six mph faster. … It was biometric swing studies of my swing, taking weaknesses and making them strengths. It was time in the gym. It was a whole workout process. It’s been a lot of work, but days like this make it worthwhile.� Phil had no choice if he wanted to compete with the youngsters who could knock it long. Much like Tom Brady seems to defy the aging process as an NFL quarterback, Mickelson is doing the same on the PGA TOUR. “Any athlete, as they get older, has to be smarter with how they treat their body,� his brother Tim said. “Whether that’s nutrition, how they stretch. You look at guys in other sports – Tom Brady, Phil here, other golfers too. They have to in order to keep up.� Of course, it helps that this tournament, and especially Pebble Beach Golf Links, is a great fit for Mickelson. His five AT&T Pebble Beach wins matches Mark O’Meara for most in tournament history, and he now has 14 wins in his native state. His ability to navigate the course serves him well in key spots. He knows he can miss far left at No. 6 in order to avoid the water – which he did on Sunday when he knocked his tee shot off the dome in the grandstands. And on his approach at the par-4 13th, he opted to chase a low-lining 7-iron to the pin instead of trying to spin back a wedge shot to a pin located on high ground. On Monday, the gameplan was simple after he parred the 17th and took a three-shot lead into 18. He played conservative off the tee with an iron but still birdied the hole after a great approach from 138 yards finished inside 7 feet. The final birdie left him at 19 under, with a career total of 149 under since his first win on this course in 1998. Asked if Pebble Beach was the best course on TOUR that suits his brother’s game, Tim replied: “There may be better courses but certainly there’s a comfortability for him on this course. He knows where he can miss it, where he can’t miss it.� Phil was asked the same question. “I would have a hard time arguing another course does. Maybe Augusta.� But not even Augusta National can match Pebble Beach in terms of the Mickelson family’s legacy. It’s only at Pebble Beach that Phil carries a silver dollar from the year of his grandfather’s birth as a ballmarker. His grandfather was one of the original caddies when Pebble Beach opened in 1919. As they walked toward the 18th green Monday, Phil showed Tim the silver dollar. No words were exchanged. They knew how much it meant for the family. “This really is a special place for me,� Phil said. It could get even more special when he returns in June.

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Shane Lowry forever will celebrate his victory at The Open Championship at Royal Portrush in 2019, but even though the pandemic canceled last year’s edition of the oldest major, if all you remembered were images and stories of the after-party in his native Dublin, you’d understand why it could have taken two years to simmer down. Lowry’s title in Northern Ireland was just as popular a coronation as the lone major victory of Northern Ireland’s Darren Clarke at Royal St. George’s in 2011, albeit for very different reasons. Indeed, both Irishmen would be prominently positioned in a Power Rankings consisting of blokes with whom you’d trade barbs over a pint or three, but Clarke was 42 years of age and still in the throes of life without his wife, Heather, who died of cancer five years prior. The 149th staging of The Open returns to Royal St. George’s this week. It’s the 15th time that it’s hosted. Clarke and Lowry are in the field of 156 that required the R&A to play every club in its bag to construct. For more on that, the backdrop, the weather – naturally – and other details, continue reading below the expanded ranking of projected contenders. RELATED: Nine things to know about Royal St. George’s | How the field qualified POWER RANKINGS: THE OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP Bryson DeChambeau, Tyrrell Hatton, Webb Simpson, Sergio Garcia, Daniel Berger and Tommy Fleetwood will be among the notables reviewed in Tuesday’s Fantasy Insider. If you’re among the devotees who follows how fields are built, then you’ve witnessed one of the busiest turnstiles in history. Including past champions who have been returning regularly, as of Monday there have been 21 early withdrawals. Many but not all have been connected to complications caused by COVID-19, but the R&A has solved the puzzle on how to present the strongest field available, and an international smattering of talent at that. (For the entire field and the 21 who opted out, read Qualifiers. Of those committed, 30 competed in the 2011 Open Championship at Royal St. George’s. Like it did that year and will again this week, the track in Sandwich – as the seabird flies, the town in southeastern England is closer to France than it is to London – will test at a par of 70. The seventh and 14th hole serve as the par 5s. The course tips at 7,189 yards, down 22 yards from a decade ago. Averaging 73.018 in 2011, Royal St. George’s ranked as the hardest course in relation to par of all that season. When it was laid out as a par 71 in 2003 – the fourth hole was a par 5 – it was even more difficult at 3.802 strokes over par. This is expected in this tournament. Unpredictable lies are the backbone to the links experience, even on the shortest grass, and the uncertainty of ever-changing conditions atmospherically deliver 1-2 punches throughout. Unlike most links layouts, Royal St. George’s consists of a front nine that snakes out to the sea with a recoil on the inward side. There also is uncharacteristic separation in between holes, and six are adjacent to the coast, although, and of course, all 18 are subject to the wind. PGATOUR.com’s Ben Everill is on site and assembled a helpful guide in “Nine Things to Know.” Courses in The Open rota are as much about execution and experience as they are about patience and understanding. You take what it gives, you don’t force the issue and you walk away with a smile when you connect with the relative successes earned. Baked into all of that is a belief that reducing errors is more important than circling par breakers. Prevailing winds will push in from the north and are forecast to be sustained at 10-15 mph for the first and final rounds. They’ll freshen a bit in between. Daytime highs will open in the low 70s before retreating into the 60s for the remainder. Most surprisingly, rain is not expected. That is not a misprint. In addition to the Claret Jug, the champion will receive 600 FedExCup points, $2.07 million, exemptions into The Open through the age of 60, exemptions into the next five editions of the other three majors and a five-year membership exemption on the PGA TOUR. ROB BOLTON’S SCHEDULE PGATOUR.COM’s Fantasy Insider Rob Bolton recaps and previews every tournament from numerous angles. Look for his following contributions as scheduled. MONDAY: Power Rankings TUESDAY*: Sleepers; Fantasy Insider SUNDAY: Qualifiers, Reshuffle, Medical Extensions, Rookie Watch * – Rob is a member of the panel for PGATOUR.COM’s Expert Picks for PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf, which also publishes on Tuesday.

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Phil Mickelson, by his own admission, hasn’t historically been “high on hybrids.” There are several reasons the reigning PGA champion hasn’t had much success with the clubs in the past: Too much variability in spin and ball flight, depending on where the ball is struck on the face. Too difficult to flight the ball down. Inconsistent distance. Given Mickelson’s apprehension around members of the hybrid family, it’s interesting to note that he is carrying one of Callaway’s new Apex UW (utility woods), which were released to retail this week. What’s different about this hybrid for Mickelson? “It gives me a consistent apex and a consistent spin rate from different lies that hybrids haven’t given me, and the ability to hit from the rough and control the flight and bring it down that fairway woods don’t,” Mickelson told Callaway’s Johnny Wunder. Mickelson’s UW hybrid is reportedly bent to 17 degrees, tightening the gap between his longer clubs while also allowing him to hit a variety of shots. The Apex UW utility wood was designed to combine the best features of higher-lofted fairway woods, hybrids, and a more neutral ball flight. “The reason why I like it is the center of gravity is more forward, or plays like an iron, so I don’t get the jumpers out of the first cut and then the big spin ones out of a tight lie, Mickelson said Wednesday from the PGA TOUR Champions’ Constellation FURYK & FRIENDS. “And the relief on the back sole allows me to open the face and keep the face open through impact in the rough on the chop rough shot, as opposed to having the back of the sole close the face through impact. It allows me keep the face open and have some loft so I can get it out of thicker, longer, heavier rough a lot easier.” We’ll be keenly watching for additional adopters on TOUR as the Apex UW arrives at retail and its profile is further raised. According to Wunder, Mickelson first set eyes on the club at the U.S. Open, where he watched fellow left-hander Akshay Bhatia use it on a long par-3 during a practice round. Bhatia began testing it at the Ely Callaway Performance Center the previous week. Given Mickelson’s love of tinkering and experimentation, it’s no surprise what happened next: Mickelson borrowed the club and fired a towering tee shot toward the green. Reportedly, Callaway had built him an Apex UW to test before he even finished the round, and an Apex UW with a Fujikura Ventus Red 9 X shaft has been among Mickelson’s chosen 14 clubs ever since.

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