| -6 Mickelson (US); -4 B. Koepka (US), L Oosthuizen (SA); -2 P Harrington (Ire), S Lowry (Ire), P Casey (Eng) Higgs (US) |
| Others choose: -1 J Rose (engineer), C. Morikawa (US); +1 M Fitzpatrick (Engineer), M Laird (SCO), I Poulter (Engineer), H. Matsuyama (Japan); +2 G Speth (US); +5 R McIlroy (ny) |
Phil Mickelson became the oldest man to win a major title when he won the US PGA Championship on Kiawah Island amid unusual scenes as thousands of fans flocked to the final aisle to witness the winning moment.
It was a victory for 50-year-old Mickelson and a reminder of the lost sport in the absence of fans during the Covid pandemic.
American spectators swept as he marched towards Green 18 en route to winning his sixth major title, eight years after his last title.
“It was very scary, but it’s exceptionally cool. I don’t think I’ve encountered anything like that before,” said Mickelson, who won six points in the Ocean Course after closing one above the 73rd average.
Two teams finished, beating fellow American Brooks Copka, who finished the race with 74, and South African Luis Ostwiesen, who signed for 73.
Mickelson sets the record for the oldest major winner from Julius Burrus, who won the title in 1968 at the age of 48, and also joins England’s Nick Faldo and American Lee Trivino as the main winner six times. Only 11 players won more.
Michelson added, “This is just an unbelievable feeling. I believed it was possible, but everything was saying it wasn’t like that and I hope others find this inspiration.”
“It may take a little extra work and a lot of effort to maintain fitness, or maintain skills, but oh my God, is it worth it in the end.
“I just love this game and love what I’m doing and love the challenge of competing against these big players.”
He will now be among the favorites at the US Open next month, and is the only major player he needs to become the sixth player to complete his Grand Slam career. It is held near his San Diego home in the Torrey Pines, a tournament in which he won three titles.
Ireland’s Padraig Harrington and Shane Lowry finished in a tie for fourth place under the Under-Two after closing rounds of 69.
They tied with American Harry Higgs and England Paul Casey, who scored consistently throughout the week and scored their third 71 goals on Sunday.
Mickelson looks out for the last day
He’s been a recent pair full of potential stories: Mikkelson aims to become the oldest major championship winner, and Koepka is looking for victory just two months after serious knee surgery.
In the end, it was Michelson who dominated the narrative and caught his nerve during a tense final round.
Koepka was eight months old when Mickelson won his first 45 PGA Tour titles as an amateur at the Northern Telecom Open in 1991 and 13 years later the American became a major champion with the first of his three Masters crowns.
He added to those who competed in the 2005 and 2013 PGA Open championships, but a win at Kiawah Island should take first place after pulling out of the Top 100 players earlier this year for the first time since 1993.
Michelson says he’s trying to improve his focus and stay more “present” by practicing meditation and other exercises to increase his focus, and he needed all this calm on the front rollercoaster Nine.
It started with a ghost and when Koepka rolled into a bird from a height of 12 feet, a two-shot swing gave the 31-year-old the lead.
But a double ghost followed Koepka as he punched a chip from a bank behind the second green and then watched how Mickelson trimmed it before he drowned in a bird’s punch to regain the lead and take advantage of two strikes on the court.
Mickelson maintained the lead despite being spooked in three times after two slides loosened around the green, but only because Koepka lost three feet of a bird.
And then, a moment of magic from the hero, he slips out of the sand into the fifth bird with the third greatest and sends the Kiawah Island crowd to almost rave.
Michelson pursued a ghost and took advantage of Koepka by retreating from the level, only to send a disastrous approach at 7 o’clock on the trolley track en route to another shot as Mickelson got up and down looking for a bird that sent him away again.
Veteran hit the turn with a sound double kick and increased it to four at 10 with a well-crafted bird as Koepka found sand and failed to recover.
The left-handed man got a five-game lead at the same stage on Saturday, only to watch it evaporate through the next three holes, but even a fan picking up his ball after a stray drive at 11 o’clock could upset him this time as Mickelson saved the ball equally and Kubka disappointed to drop five Back, which means Ostwiesen was once again his closest competitor.
After avoiding the water from the tee at the age of 13, Mickelson found it as he approached the green and made a ghost in succession, although Oosthuizen dropped two bullets into the same hole after finding the water as well.
This means that Mickelson leads with three shots before playing four.
Oosthuizen, whose only win came at the 2010 Open, flew in 16th to keep the fight alive, but moments later, Mickelson, who turns 51 next month, scored the longest distance for any player this week in the pit, around 366 yards, at His stadium. Way to birds on his own.
Mickelson said he was enjoying this week, although there was nothing fun in a hard 17th, he could withstand a shot and head 18th with a two-stroke advantage.
As his approach landed on the green, a tumultuous crowd swept across the boardwalk and Michelson had to make his way to the surface to put the finishing touches to his historic victory.
Koepka was disappointed with his situation on Saturday and also missed several close attempts on Sunday in closing the two above 74.
He still had an outside chance to win the championship in the past but had to end in the madness surrounding Mickelson.
The four-time main champion, who took an extra two minutes to make his way onto the field, said, “It would have been great if I hadn’t had a knee injury and got hit several times in the knee in the midst of this crowd.” Green color.
“It’s great for Phil. But getting injured multiple times isn’t exactly my idea of ​​fun.”
Harrington is going back on the years
Vulture in five seconds and birds of chips in 14 was the highlight of Harrington’s European Ryder Cup captain’s tour as he pulled back the years to score three under 69 on Sunday and finishes two below par for a stake. From fourth place.
It is the best achievement for a major champion three times in a major tournament since winning that event in 2008.
The 49-year-old had a great time playing with Irish teammate Laurie, the Open champion also scored 69 points to finish in second place.
“I don’t think I enjoyed touring golf as much as I enjoyed playing Shane,” Harrington said.
“It was amazing how comfortable I was from the tee to the green. When your head is in the right place it is a lot easier to play golf well. It was a very nice combination.”
Casey also shared fourth and briefly threatened to put an early run with back-to-back birds at two and three, but five birds overall were compensated with four ghosts as he finished four off the lead.
Justin Rose failed to break the tie in the opening three days, but he published one of the day’s rounds with five under 67 that included eight birds, ghost and double to leave one English player in the tournament.
Northern Ireland’s Rory McIlroy couldn’t tame the ocean course as well as he did during their 2012 win, with the pre-tournament favorite finishing five times on an equal footing.
Jordan Speth continues to wait to complete his Grand Slam career after finishing two places on a par, one behind Japan Masters champion Hideki Matsuyama, while US Open champion Bryson Deschambo has tripled with last day 77.
0 Comments