After flirting once again with a 59, Phil Mickelson settled Thursday for another portion of the PGA TOUR record book, as he became the first golfer to record three rounds of 60 or better in TOUR history (ShotLink Era). Mickelson shot a 12-under 60 in the opening round of the Desert Classic, as he torched La Quinta Country Club with 10 birdies and an eagle. He rolled in a birdie putt inside 10 feet on the par-4 18th to record his 60. Mickelson’s two previous 60s both came at the Waste Management Phoenix Open – in 2005 and 2013. Unlike those two 60s, the Thursday round at La Quinta was on a par-72 course. The 12 under total is Mickelson’s lowest round in relation to par in his World Golf Hall of Fame career. The only other TOUR players to shoot multiple rounds of 60 or better are Jim Furyk (who owns the TOUR record of 58, along with one of the nine rounds of 59 in TOUR history) and Zach Johnson (who has shot two rounds in the 60s). Mickelson’s round Thursday is the 37th time in TOUR history that a player has shot 60. He made the turn in 30 and promptly ripped off five birdies in his next seven holes. Needing to go birdie-birdie on his final two holes to shoot 59, he came up just short, making par on the par-4 17th before his birdie on the final hole. He walked off the 18th green with a four-shot lead over Curtis Luck, with several groups still in action at the Desert Classic, which uses three courses in the first three days. “It was kind of a lucky day for me in the sense that I did not feel sharp heading in,� Mickelson said. “I haven’t really had the intense practice sessions that I would like, but I felt that all parts were OK and it just clicked. Sometimes you have days where it just clicks. Bad shots that I hit, I got away with it … It was a fun day, but I certainly did not expect this to be the case.� With no expectations of shooting low, Mickelson said he was just staying more in the present “for the simple reason that I didn’t feel like I was firing on all cylinders.� But he did acknowledge that before making his 4-footer at the 16th for birdie, he realized that 59 was in reach. Using a sand wedge on his approach into 17, Mickelson said he didn’t hook it as much as he wanted, leaving him a much longer putt than he would’ve liked. Mickelson nearly shot 59 at the 2013 Waste Management, but a brutal lip-out on the final hole ended his chances. He was vying to become the 11th player in PGA TOUR history to shoot a sub-60 score in tournament competition. The last player to shoot 59 was Brandt Snedeker at the 2018 Wyndham Championship. The only 58 in PGA TOUR history was by Jim Furyk at the 2016 Travelers Championship.
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