After a stunning runner-up finish at the Masters last year at Augusta National Golf Club, Phil Mickelson will not be able to repeat that accomplishment based on his current play.
Mickelson shot a 10-over 80 in the opening round at LIV Golf Hong Kong at Hong Kong Golf Club, which left him in absolute last place out of 54 players. After a 12-year break, Lefty returned to the game and ended four shots poorer than Anthony Kim, who was participating in his fourth competitive round.
When you take into account the golf course that Mickelson played on, his performance is considerably worse.
For players of his ability, the 6,710-yard Hong Kong Golf Club should be a walk in the park. To put things in perspective, the typical PGA Tour course is more than 7,300 yards. Just ten players, including Mickelson, shot over par in the opening round, with nearly half of the field shooting three under or better. The only player who didn’t record an eagle or birdie on Friday was the six-time major champion.
For Mickelson, this was nothing new either. The 53-year-old scored a T51 at Mayakoba and a T30 at Las Vegas to start the 2024 LIV season. Prior to this week’s competition, Mickelson had the 50th-best driving accuracy among 54 players, the 48th-best scrambling percentage, and the 42nd-best greens in regulation percentage. This week will make those numbers appear even worse.
Last week in Jeddah, Mickelson achieved his best finish in three attempts at Royal Greens Golf and Country Club, placing him in T6. He was so sure that his impressive achievement would translate to Hong Kong.
“I had a good week,” Mickelson said to the press. “I’ve never had a better finish here. I hope to improve upon the things I’ve discovered in my game and maintain my strong play leading up to the event in Hong Kong. However, I have a lot to be thankful for from past weekend.
Yes, thanks a lot for that.
The bright spot for Mickelson is that, in four LIV starts prior to the 2023 Masters, he finished T35, T27, T30, and T41. Perhaps he doesn’t require any more push to conjure up some Augusta magic for the second year in a row.