"Mickelson’s most important battle is about motivation."

Golf World's Jaime Diaz takes a look at the State of Phil heading into the U.S. Open at Chambers Bay and beyond.

Besides getting some insight into how Dave Stockton helped with Mickelson's putting at the Masters, there was also this about speed and motivation.

He’s definitely still capable, but it’s complicated. It would appear that Mickelson has lost a bit of his fastball in the past couple of years. By 2012, his PGA Tour-measured average clubhead speed had dropped from 122.04 miles per hour in 2007 to 116.81, and then last year, to 115.62. Simply not enough for the big game Phil prefers to play. Moreover, the technical changes he began with Butch Harmon in 2007 seem stagnant, as his swing remains overly long, overly steep and overly wild off the tee. And perhaps the psoriatic arthritis Mickelson was diagnosed with in 2010 is a bigger issue than he lets on.

But he vowed to work out hard over the offseason, and so far this year, his average is up to an impressive 118.32 mph. Still, his out-of-nowhere, near-peak performances in majors demonstrate that Mickelson’s most important battle is about motivation.

“I’ve been able to get some of my best golf out in [majors] when I focus in on them,” he said at the Masters, where he tied with Justin Rose, four behind Spieth. “But I don’t have a great answer for you why or how that is.”

44, been there, done that at tour events? And is there anything wrong with veterans like Mickelson or Woods doing as Hogan did by centering their year around the majors? Adam Scott seems to be in that mode as well.