Shell Open Houston saw commanding victory as Phil Mickelson slips glory in the nick of time; ready to defend his title as the 2010 Masters champion, Sunday.
Twelve months ago, Mickelson was just like every other golf champions who seemed to go winless after earning his third Green Jacket, but this time, he closed in with blistering rounds of 63-65 in order to shoot a tournament-record 20-under-par at Redstone Golf Club in Humble, Texas. Chris Kirk and Scott Verplank were on his heels after he finished three strokes ahead of the course.
"I don't know, that's not for me to say. I'm just trying to get my game in shape." Said Mickelson simply after he was asked if his performance did well for his chances this coming week at the Augusta National.
Te only glitch he had on a scorecard were a pair of bogeys he made in his final round on hole nos. 2 and 3, plus seven birdies, a four in a row from the 10th through 13th holes.
"I've got to maintain my focus throughout the round," Mickelson said. "Next week at Augusta National, that golf course can be very penalizing."
Mickelson jumpstarts the day with a chip-in for birdie at the par-4 first hole to take the lead, but then his bogeys at Nos. 2 and 3 dropped him behind two shots against Verplank. A birdie at the par-4 11th brought him to equals to Verplank, and a par three holes afterwards made him take the lead outright.
Pulling away at No. 16 after he almost holed his 6-iron to set up a birdie 2, Verplank fell three shots back, as he bogeyed the hole.
"He played some terrific golf," Mickelson said, "and I was fortunate in the end."
In the history of the Masters, four champions won a tournament a week before earning a Green Jacket, including Ralph Guldahl in 1939, Art Wall (1959), Sandy Lyle (1988), and Mickelson (2006). In that same year, he eagled the 72nd hole to post a 13-stroke, wire-wire victory at the TPC at Sugarloaf. He then garnered his second Masters title the following week with a two-shot victory against Tim Clark.
The Shell Houston Open proved to be a particularly good game for Mickelson to plat, given the circumstances that the course was designed to resemble that of Augusta National.
"The golf course is in the best shape of just about any course we play," Mickelson said.
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