“Hi, I’m Phil,” as if the walking scorers and marshals assigned to Sunday’s 40th group of the day did not know.
It was Sunday afternoon of the U.S. Open at Pebble Beach and Phil Mickelson along with caddy Jim ‘Bones’ MacKay were on the the tee of the first hole.
Mickelson was introducing himself to the volunteers assigned to the group, “Cheryl did you say, nice to meet you.”
As I watched Mickelson go through this exercise, an exercise performed countless times each week by PGA Tour pros, I realized why Phil Mickelson is so beloved.
More than any other player, Mickelson leaves an impression on the people fans he encounters.
Don’t believe me, compare Mickelson with the rest of the field during his next Tournament. Count how many ‘knocks’ he reciprocates between green and tee. Then add in the nods and grins (regardless of position on the leaderboard) and Mickelson is off the charts.
Psst. There’s more of this stuff you don’t see. I’ve watched him chat with lonely Marshals stationed on outlying holes, thank fans while signing autographs after a round and for those in his Pro-Am group, nobody is better (he reads putts, cleans clubs, helps with swings, makes jokes, call everyone by their first name, etc…).
It’s not all good however. We differ on 5 Guys and with his slight hang-back at impact, his face is often out of focus in my photos.
These ‘issues’ aside, what does any of this have to do with the U.S. Open?
Candidly not much outside of getting you to look at my photographs and the reason why I wrote this piece.
During Open week I happened to bump into Bones off the course. Between pleasantries the conversation touched on a sore topic, the undercurrent of animosity that has permeated Mickelson’s career.
“I don’t understand it, it’s been there for a longtime and not deserved,” said MacKay, Mickelson’s caddy since he turned pro in 1993.
The culprit as we both know, an old article from Gentlemen’s Quarterly, an article that in full disclosure, jaded my perspective for a number of years.
If you recall the piece, it’s dead wrong. If you don’t, all the better! Mickelson mea culpa.
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Checkout all of the action from the 110th U.S. Open at Pebble Beach:
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