Why Did Tiger and Phil Play So Well This Weekend?

Earlier today, I gave a decent amount of credit to the friendship and relationships that were seemingly fostered by the Paul Azinger led 2008 Ryder Cup team.  The Myers-Briggs inspired concept led to some teamwork that had been kind of neglected by the rugged American individuals in the past few team competitions. 

At the same time, though, the Americans have won each of the last three team competitions like this one.  What else has been happening the last three years?  The FedExCup.  And the support from the players has meant that guys like Tiger and Phil are playing high level golf well into the fall instead of sitting out September through November - where these competitions are held.

Phil Mickelson even acknowledged as much.  He used to shut it down after the PGA Championship until he went on his Asian vacation to rack up multimillion dollar appearance fees on that junket.  Now, he's playing in the US for an extra month, staying sharp.

Then again, Mickelson played in the FedExCup playoffs and went 1-2-1 at Valhalla.  Perhaps the combination of staying sharp and the rejuvenating teachings of Dave Stockton led to Lefty's great performance this weekend.

Or, maybe it's the Presidents Cup.  In 2007, Mickelson went 2-1-2 at Royal Montreal.  Eh.  In his career, Mickelson was 11-13-9 going into Harding Park.  This may well have been more of an aberration for Phil than the norm. 

Same for Tiger.  He went 3-2 in the '07 Pres Cup - losing on Singles Sunday to Mike Weir by 1.  He didn't play in '08.  Now, he goes undefeated at Harding Park.  Maybe it's just Harding Park.