Say What?

by Mulligan Stu on Feb 20, 2007 9:47 PM EST

NBC Sports had a teleconference today with the NBC golf team, led by Johnny Miller.

And Miller, not surprisingly, had the line of the day. Talking about how, in his view, Tiger Woods' swing has become more Ben Hoganesque, Miller said of Woods' coach, Hank Haney:

Hank Haney loves Ben Hogan so much he probably wears his old underwear.

That was the highlight for me. One of the lowlights was what Gary Koch had to say about Phil Mickelson:

I kind of liken watching Phil Mickelson to why fans watch NASCAR. You're always waiting for the wreck to happen. It seems like with Phil, good or bad, he seems to provide some of those thrills for you, from some of the decisions he makes or even with the shots that he hits at the wrong time. But I certainly think there are a core group of people out there that love to watch him just for that reason.

I don't mean to single out Koch, whose announcing I very much enjoy. He's probably right in this assessment, too.

What bugs me is that all anyone can seem to talk about with Mickelson is how he might screw up at any minute. It's like they're talking about some journeyman.

Helloooooo. People. Remind yourselves of something: Phil has won 30 times on the PGA Tour. Yes, he crashes and burns every so often. But he also wins a lot, too.

In fact, Mickelson has won more in his career (a career that's still going strong) than did Lee Trevino, Tommy Armour or Johnny Miller.

Mickelson has more PGA Tour wins than Gary Player. More than Raymond Floyd, Lanny Wadkins, Greg Norman or Nick Price. More than Hale Irwin, Ben Crenshaw, Curtis Strange or Tom Kite.

He's got more wins than Davis Love III. Mickelson has twice as many wins as Fred Couples. And he has twice as many PGA Tour wins as Ernie Els.

Phil Mickelson is a helluva golfer. We notice him crashing and burning - and make such a big deal out of it - mostly because he's in contention so often.

If Mickelson had played in the post-Tom Watson, pre-Tiger Woods time period - the time period in which the biggest winners on the PGA Tour were Norman and Price, Strange and Couples - he would have dominated.

Let's not let his occasional foibles cause us to forget how great a golfer Phil Mickelson is.

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Reason for the comment

I think the reason for the comment is that Phil has lived up to his stereotype as a "gunslinger" time after time. Someone who is willing to take huge risks when it is not necessary. Sure, Phil has won a lot of times, but he has also let the wheels fall off time after time. Compare the number of times Phil has started a final round in the last group and won with the number of times Tiger has started the final round in the last group and won. Does anyone think that Tiger Woods would have come to the 72nd hole of the US Open with a 2 shot lead and have lost without a playoff. Phil is Brett Favre, Tiger is Tom Brady, Joe Montana, and Troy Aikman combined.

by MOlson on Feb 21, 2007 2:10 AM EST reply actions

point taken

Molson, point taken, and I'm not saying that Phil's derring-do is something we should overlook. He DOES crash and burn sometimes. I'm saying we shouldn't let that overwhelm our appreciation for all the times he doesn't crash and burn, but instead wins. You wrote, "Compare the number of times Phil has started a final round in the last group and won with the number of times Tiger has started the final round in the last group and won." Yes, but compare ANY golfer throughout history, with the possible exceptions of Nicklaus and Hogan, and they pale to Tiger. Phil does self-destruct sometimes, and he does play in the Tiger era, two things that combined can make people think of him as someone who fails a lot. But in reality, he's someone who wins a lot - more than many other great golfers you could name.

by Mulligan Stu on Feb 21, 2007 10:05 AM EST up reply actions

Agreed

I think the biggest point is that he is playing in the Tiger Era. In the end he is going to be judged against his piers as unfair as that is in the Tiger Era.

by MOlson on Feb 21, 2007 9:03 PM EST up reply actions

Mickelson

Stu, I think you make a valid point. Lefty gets a ton of scrutiny in the Tiger era for not finishing the deal. But his record is quite good. And he should have several more good years on Tour to add more majors and wins.

The Armchair Golfer

by The Armchair Golfer on Feb 21, 2007 8:41 AM EST reply actions