"It's probably not as fun to play day in and day out as it was, but that's what you have to have to be able to host a U.S. Open."

Thanks to reader David for catching this from Phil Mickelson's gathering with the media Wednesday:

Q. Can you talk about your feelings having the U.S. Open here in San Diego and some of the changes that are going to be made to the course?

PHIL MICKELSON: Well, I love that we're hosting the U.S. Open. I think that San Diego has needed that, or I think it'll just really do a lot for the game of golf in the area. So I'm so excited that it did get the U.S. Open. The golf course is very difficult to play. It's probably not as fun to play day in and day out as it was, but that's what you have to have to be able to host a U.S. Open. It's one of the hardest golf courses I've ever seen day in and day out, 7,600 yards at sea level, it's just very difficult.

Ruin a servicable municipal golf course for one week of play. And why is that again? Oh right, red numbers are embarrassing. What a shame.

The Classic Club...Classic Tournament Killer?

Bill Dwyre in the L.A. Times makes up for Saturday's Phil Mickelson column (Phil remembers the names of his pro-am partners!) with a succinct indictment on The Classic Club course, which frequently delivers winds like Sunday's.

Many said it was the worst wind they have experienced, and those were the former mountain climbers. The weatherman put the winds at 15-20 mph, with gusts up to 40. Mostly, there were gusts.

Now keep that number in mind when reading the next bit. First, Larry Bohannan in the Desert Sun:

It was an ominous question at best.

"Are they going to play this course again next year?" Phil Mickelson asked after his windy Sunday round on the final day at Classic Club in the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic.

Yes, Phil, they are going to play this course again. They own the course.

"Who?" Mickelson asked.

The Bob Hope Chrysler Classic, came the response.

With that, Mickelson turned and walked away to sign some autographs without a response.

And here's where it gets fun...

Mike Milthorpe, the Hope tournament director, said he certainly hopes Mickelson and other players won't make decisions about whether to play in the Classic in the future simply on one horrible day of weather.

"I don't know that (Mickelson) questioned the course," Milthorpe said. "He may have questioned the conditions. It's a tough day today, no ifs, ands or buts. If anything, he may have just questioned the day."

Milthorpe said Classic Club isn't fighting a bad perception about wind among the PGA Tour players. The perception, he said, comes from media reports about wind and the so-called wind belt on the north side of the freeway.

I wonder where they would get the idea that it blows?
 

The trees lining the railroad tracks? The thousands of wind turbines? The fact no one in their right mind would build anything out there until the last few years?

That biased, negative, liberal elite media!

Last year's final round, for instance, was described as a blustery day, making it tough on the final groups down the stretch. But Milthorpe said the official tour report on the final day listed a wind speed of 17 mph.

Key word: unofficial.

Tod Leonard in the San Diego Union Tribune offered this:

Perhaps because he knew he would get queries, Milthorpe said he checked with the other three courses in the Hope rotation yesterday and said the wind conditions were similar.

“The perception is the media's perception,” Milthorpe said. “We had firemen gauging the wind today, and it didn't get above 25 mph. We got a tour report from last year for this golf course and the winds Sunday were 17 mph. But if you listened to the commentators and what the media wrote, it sounded like it was huge wind.”

They say the camera adds 10 pounds. Maybe it adds 10 mph too? 

Either way, you have a new 7,600 yard course that is so massive in scale that the amateurs clearly don't enjoy walking and playing it. 

You have a final round that took just under 6 hours (based on my TiVo calculation) and an event that drew only one player in the world top 30.

Those short, harmless little old desert courses like Indian Wells, Bermuda Dunes and El Dorado aren't looking so bad are they?

Oh that's right, they're dated because the guys are working out too much. I keep forgetting!

Update on 2007-01-23 16:52 by Geoff

Reader Clive forwarded these comments in Tod Leonard's piece that I missed. They come from Mark Calcaveccia and Nick Watney after Sunday's wind event and would seem to refute the notion that the wind severity was a media-driven concoction.

Calcavecchia is in his 26th full season on the tour, and he said after shooting 3-under 69 yesterday that he couldn't remember playing in wind conditions so severe.

“The good news is it wasn't raining,” said Calcavecchia, who jumped 28 spots to tie for eighth in the final round. “If it had been raining, it would have been like the round at Muirfield (in the 2002 British Open, when Tiger Woods shot 81). It probably wasn't as windy there, but it was raining and it was colder.

“It was pretty nasty (yesterday),” he said. “It was close to having to call it out there. Nick Watney's ball caught a gust of wind (on the green) and it rolled down a hill. I had a 4-footer on 6, and it was a right-center (of the hole) putt. The second I hit it a gust blew it six inches off line. It was unbelievable.”

“I don't want to get in the bad habits"

Tod Leonard in the San Diego Union Tribune also had this from Phil Mickelson after Sunday's final round:

“It was hard, but today I didn't want to try to fight it too much,” Mickelson said. “I don't want to get in the bad habits, which is the main reason why I don't play Kapalua (for the season-opening Mercedes-Benz Championship)."

Ohhh...the FedEx Cup schedule may be starting a week later for Phil next year. 

What Was Phil Really Thinking?

Alan Shipnuck has some fun with Mickelson's Tuesday press conference.

Few More Thoughts On Phil Entering Design

In re-reading the story on Mickelson entering design (this Golfweek version pretty much regurgitates the press release), a few things came to mind.

First, it was refreshing that there wasn't the obligatory paragraph about how he wants to design courses that are challenging for the professional and yet playable for the average golfer. (It was probably T.R. Reinman who spared us that nonsense.)

But at the same time, it would be nice to know why Phil is entering the business now just a year or so after indicating that he was slowing down to focus on playing. (He was featured in a Links cover story I wrote on emerging player-architects, but his design career was downplayed because of this apparent dedication to his game while he was still at his peak).

I'm fascinated by the move of Tiger, Phil and Ernie into design when the money is really not that great compared to what they make on the course. That was one of Mickelson's reason for not being more interested, unless of course, like Tiger, his fee has skyrocketed into a stratosphere that us mere mortals.

Actually, I think I've answered my own questions here. Thanks for bearing with me. 

"I'm just trying to hit high bombs."

One other item of interest from Mickelson's press conference was this comment about the new square headed driver...

Q: Could you talk to us about what you think the reception of that will be on the PGA TOUR and what you think about it?

Phil Mickelson: Well, I think that the FTI, the square-headed driver, is not just an evolutionary driver. I think it's more of a revolutionary driver. Because it's such a drastic change, because the moment of inertia is so high, because the ball goes so straight it doesn't want to curve, I think it's actually going to take a little bit more time on the PGA TOUR.

There will be guys that love it. Guys that don't like to work shots and want to aim it down the middle of the fairway and rip it, this will be perfect for them because it goes so straight but some guys like to hit little draws, hit a fade, hit high shots, low shots; and the design from my manufacturer, the FT5 is a much better fit to hit those variety of shots.

But if I just wanted to hit it straight, I'll go to the FTI which is why I'm leaning towards that driver for Augusta when I tried to hit it a lot longer. I'm not really trying to manoeuvre it or curve it; I'm just trying to hit high bombs.

Thank God Hootie has retired. Otherwise they'd probably be out planting more tacky pines today at Augusta. 

"Phil is only going to design about 10 golf courses"

In the release covering Phil Mickelson's surprising move into course design (surprising because just a year or so ago he was downplaying his interest in this area for the time being), there is the usual stuff about projects and who he'll be working with (different people on different projects).

But reader Jordan caught this quote from his agent, which I thought was odd.

"Phil is only going to design about 10 golf courses, and RiverRock will be his mountain course," said Tim Ummel, Mickelson's agent.

Only 10? This year or ever?

Different Takes On Star Absences

From Jeff Rude's Golfweek.com column defending Tiger...

The opinionated Arron Oberholser, a TC newcomer, joined some press pundits in impaling America's two big shots for their absence. "I think the biggest players have a responsibility to the Tour to play in these," said perhaps the only young Republican from San Francisco. "Tiger might not want to hear that and Phil might not want to hear that, but they don't write my paycheck, so I don't care. I think it's about having a responsibility to your place in the game."

And from Geoff Ogilvy...

"The Tour is so good because of people like Tiger and Phil, so you can't say that Tiger and Phil are hurting the Tour by not (playing here)," the Australian said. "Where would the Tour be without Tiger and Phil? We'd be playing for $2.5 million a week, we'd have 20 tournaments, not one would be watching it on TV. We'd be back where we were 15 years ago.

Phil's Family Vacation

Ed Sherman and George White offer two very different takes on Phil Mickelson vanishing from the face of the planet until the Bob Hope Classic. While White seemingly dusts off something from a Gaylord Sports release (complete with a breakdown of charitable donations), Sherman points out that Mickelson's lack of interest after the PGA does not bode well for the FedEx Cup, a system developed with Phil's input in mind.

Mickelson Out of Grand Slam, Practicing Rest For FedEx Cup?

Phil Mickelson has pulled out of the PGA of America's Grand Slam of Golf to stay home and prepare for next fall's FedEx Cup playoffs, when he will...stay at home.

Based on his 3rd place finish at the AT&T and World Ranking outside the top 30, Mike Weir gets the call to replace Mickelson.

 

Mickelson Calling It A Year (After The Ryder Cup)

Now, I don't doubt that he puts an amazing amount of energy into the majors. But tell me again why this FedEx Cup playoffs thing is going to work when players like Mickelson are spent after the PGA Championship? Is he really going to play 6 of the next 7 weeks?

Phil's Pre-PGA Press Conference

Defending PGA Champion Phil Mickelson had some fun with certain questions from the assembled scribblers.

Q. Obviously you use the week before majors to prepare. How disappointing was it last week to miss the cut, and has that affected your preparation for this week?

PHIL MICKELSON: Well, it's a different strategy going in. You know, I guess here's a great example of how Tiger and I prepare differently. He goes into the PGA Championship thinking that winning the British and winning the Buick Open is the best way, and I go in thinking that missing the cut is the best (laughter), and it gives me a week off to focus on my game. See, he didn't have that weekend off (laughter).

He actually took this question seriously, which provides an interesting contrast to Tiger's comments about hitting a lot of 3-woods and 2-irons:

Q. What's your plan as far as what you're going to hit off the tee this week?

PHIL MICKELSON: That's still undecided exactly, because I may go with two drivers again like I did at Augusta, I may go with one.

Really, the difference is the temperature. If it's warm enough where I can hit 3 wood on some of the other par 4s where I just want to get the ball in the fairway, then I will most likely just use one driver, and it would be the longer driver to take advantage of some of the par 5s and the long par 4s.

Medinah is such a long golf course that the extra length has come in handy.

Back to comedy hour. 

Q. If our research is correct, you and Tiger played together a grand total of one time in the majors, and that was at The Masters in '01, so Thursday and Friday will be kind of a rarity.

PHIL MICKELSON: It's amazing how those random computer pairings spit that stuff out, huh?

And as with Tiger's press conference, the longer it went, the worse the questions got.

Q. There are ten left handers on Tour this year. Do you have any thoughts on the factors that have led to more success for lefties than ever before?

PHIL MICKELSON: Yeah, that's a good question. I could try to make a joke of it, but I just don't have one (laughter). I think it's great. I think that it's nice that we have more on Tour because now we're getting more equipment opportunities on Tour, which is ultimately leading to more left handed equipment or better left handed equipment immediately to the consumer, as well. I think if we can keep that up and have equipment be accessible to everyone left handed, I think we might continue to see an increase. But it takes time, like anything.

And the finale...

Q. Not to harp on the pairings, but what's the difference for you playing with a guy like Freddie like at The Masters versus a guy like Tiger?

PHIL MICKELSON: Amount of conversation.

Pelz: Phil "has more imagination and a few more shots around the green"

Ed Sherman offers some quotes that should make Thursday's Tiger-Phil pairing that much chillier:

"When Phil's at his best, I'm thinking nobody can beat him," Pelz said.

Does Pelz's bold pronouncement include a certain player who has won 50 PGA Tour titles and 11 majors?

"You bet it does," Pelz said. "If Phil's long swing is good, his short game, I believe, is the best in the world. He doesn't have a serious weakness inside 150 yards.

"I'm not saying Tiger's short game is bad. He has a great short game. But I think Phil putts more consistently than Tiger does. He has more imagination and a few more shots around the green."

Pelz adds one caveat.

"The question is, how often is Phil on his best game?" he said.

Mickelson's "Exhaustive" Medinah Search

Ed Sherman reports on Phil Mickelson's quest to find some semblance of design character at Medinah. Accompanying Phil were his caddy, dad and of course, senior advisor to The People's Champion, Dave Pelz.

"They broke down every green complex," [Medinah Head Pro Mike] Scully said. "They looked at every possible putt, and every possible chip or bunker shot. Then he practiced those shots. He studies it hard. It was very impressive."

Without Special Access...

Here is the San Diego Union Tribune's Nick Canepa on Phil's latest photo op charitable foundation event.

Meanwhile, thanks to reader Chuck for the head's up on the latest infomercial debuting Saturday on CBS, and hopefully not coming to a DVD anytime soon. From PGATour.com:

Humble in nature and quick to deflect praise and attention, Mickelson himself would point to the personal and professional support network that has helped him achieve his lofty status. “The People’s Champion” will talk with each of the people who have played such a pivotal role in his success story.

Amy Mickelson. Phil’s dedication to his game is perhaps equaled only by the dedication to their charitable foundation. We’ll find out where their energies have been most pointedly directed and which charities the foundation will target throughout 2006.

Rick Smith and Dave Pelz. Both of these men have helped shape the game that has developed into the most complete on the PGA TOUR. We’ll watch one of their many practice sessions and study the unique approach to refining Phil’s world class skills.

We'll also see the two legendary teachers fight for the co-pilot's seat when Phil takes the wheel of his jet as cameras roll.

Just making sure you were still reading.

Jim McKay. Balancing the dynamics of a relationship that is both personal and professional is never easy. No one can argue with these results. “Bones” has been by Phil’s side for 15 years, sharing the joy and the pain. We’ll watch and listen as they work together in their office; the range.

Steve Loy. Phil’s former golf coach at Arizona State was on the bag in Tucson in 1991; the first of 29 PGA TOUR victories. He’ll offer a first hand account of the two-decade progression from college freshman to two-time Masters champion, and for the first time ever, will take off his sunglasses as cameras roll.

Again, just wanted to see if you were reading. Because now you have to read carefully. 

Without any special access, “The People’s Champion” will also document, in a behind-the-scenes style, the week of the U.S. Open as Mickelson chases his third consecutive major championship at Winged Foot Golf Club amid the electrified atmosphere that can only be generated by his passionate New York fans.

That's right, they are touting the fact that they did NOT get special access! Gee, makes you just want to run to the TiVo!

Interspersed within the show will also be footage and interviews already gathered, describing Phil’s introduction to the game in Southern California. We’ll hear stories from Phil, his dad and those in the San Diego area who saw his enormous potential at a very young age.

Produced by PGA TOUR Productions, “Phil Mickelson, The People’s Champion” airs Sat., Aug. 12 at 1:30 p.m. ET on CBS Sports.

See, the PGA Tour doesn't consult Mark Steinberg on everything they do.