Phil & Tiger Roundup: Fortune's Highest Paid List Shuffle, Pinehurst & Tiger Hitting Drivers

Landing 6th at $37.2 million on Fortune's best guess at income earned in 2013, Phil Mickelson passed Tiger Woods who fell to 7th with $35.5 million last year.

Floyd Mayweather finished atop the list with $105 million in earnings.

Speaking of Mickelson, I followed him quite a bit at Pinehurst and filed this story for Golf World suggesting that there was an odd sameness to his rounds and body language, but that his game is ultimately not that far off.

As for Tiger, he hit balls last weekend, including drivers after starting work on the range last Tuesday, first reported by Tim Rosaforte on Morning Drive and more extensively later on Golf Central. Agent Mark Steinberg confirmed but the timetable for a competitive return remains unsettled.

Corrections And Amplifications, WSJ And Phil Edition

Thanks to reader John for noticing the Wall Street Journal's very minor "Corrections & Addendums" to their original story from two weeks ago on Phil Mickelson and the federal investigation of insider trading.

Corrections & Amplifications

Golfer Phil Mickelson didn't trade Clorox securities, according to his lawyer. An earlier version of this article incorrectly said Mr. Mickelson's trading in Clorox was under scrutiny.

While the New York Times was criticized for almost entirely retracting their reporting on Mickelson, the paper at least did so in fairly high-profile fashion. It appears the Journal is not ready to do so yet.

New York Times (Grudgingly) Admits They Misfired On Phil Mickelson's Part In Insider Trading Story

The Matthew Goldstein and Ben Protess story which, while still suggesting Phil Mickelson may have issues related to his Dean Foods trades that netted him $1 million (to Billy Walters' $15 million), includes this:

“The new details, provided in the interviews with the people briefed on the matter, indicate that Mr. Mickelson’s ties to the investigation are weaker than previously reported.”

My analysis at GolfDigest.com's The Loop.

Phil: “If nobody hit a green, I feel like my chances are the best"

Intriguing quote from Phil Mickelson, as quoted by Sean Martin of PGATour.com covering the FedEx St. Jude Classic, that might sound weird at first reading:

“If nobody hit a green, I feel like my chances are the best,” he said. “I’m excited about the prospect of a U.S. Open that has (the) short game as such an important element.”

I think this was the nicest way he could say that Pinehurst is all about scrambling, and I would agree.

If there is a U.S. Open course where players will miss a lot of greens, it's Pinehurst. A few of the pinched landing areas may force some longer irons in, while the sandy waste will probably result in a few more greens hit and a lot more recovery shots missing.

Which is why I love scramblers this week, if there is such a thing anymore. Something to factor in for your fantasy picks and pools. Not that I condone gambling of any kind.