Mickelson collapses over final two holes

WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS, W.Va. — For 16 adventurous holes, Phil Mickelson rotated shots equally terrific and terrible, a sequence more up-and-down than the mountaintops framing the Greenbrier Classic.

Phil Mickelson dropped four strokes over the final two holes Thursday,

Through all that instability, however, he remained at even par, seemingly about to salvage nothing worse than a zero-sum afternoon as Thursday’s round wound to a close.

Then came Nos. 17 and 18, where Mickelson flailed and faltered to an embarrassing finish.

A snowman triple-bogey on the 17th hole, followed by a bogey on 18, left Mickelson 4 over and in danger of missing a third consecutive cut on the Old White TPC.

“I just don’t score well here—I don’t know why,” he said.

Surrounded by the day’s largest galleries, Mickelson teamed with Bubba Watson (2 under) and defending champ Ted Potter Jr. (1 under) on what amounted to a must-see afternoon grouping. Though fairly even most of he afternoon,  the group experienced separation when Mickelson went from the water to the sand on No. 17. A three-putt gave him an 8 on the hole, and on No. 18 he ran an 11-foot par putt far past the cup and missed the 4-foot return.

“I’m struggling reading these greens, really having a hard time on the 5- and 6-footers,” he said.  “They look so straight to me and they’re moving quite a bit. So I’m having a tough time adjusting to this golf course. It’s subtly challenging.”

Mickelson, having likely played himself out of the tournament in the span of two holes, dismissed talk of a Friday comeback.

“I’m so far back that I just want to play a solid round and see what that does,” he said. “You know there’s a low round out there—I just have to go shoot it.”





More News

News
UMWA to fight planned Pennsylvania coal mine closure, 700 mining jobs at risk
Mine located south of Waynesburg, Pa., less than 40 miles from Morgantown.
March 28, 2024 - 2:23 pm
News
Bridge collapse having an impact on West Virginia coal shipments
About third of the coal mined in northern West Virginia is shipped out of the presently idled Port of Baltimore
March 28, 2024 - 1:18 pm
News
Charleston animal shelter seeks more donations, fosters following U-Haul crash
The corner roof of the Kanawha-Charleston Humane Association building was stabilized Thursday morning.
March 28, 2024 - 12:41 pm
News
Controversial unemployment bill becomes law without governor's signature
The bill freezes employer contributions and freezes benefits for people who lose their jobs.
March 28, 2024 - 12:20 pm


Your Comments