Saudi International - Round 1, 2, 3, 4

Seems like Phil is being enticed to belly up to the Premier Golf League that's being pitched around?

Phil Mickelson, after playing Saudi pro-am with backers of rival PGA Tour venture, says he's impressed by Premier Golf League pitch

http://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/golf/phil-mickelson-after-playing-saudi-pro-am-with-backers-of-rival-pga-tour-venture-says-hes-impressed-by-premier-golf-league-pitch/ar-BBZsj2a?li=BBnba9I&ocid=iehp

Phil -1 thru 14 (includes 3 bogies, 1 double-bogey, 5 birdies).  Makes too many bad scores to contend.  But, "he's hitting bombs", lol.

Phil rattles flagstick

Well, Phil goes on a tear, birdies 4 of last 5 holes to end up -4, T-6th. Good show. Even though Phil never played this course before, most players don't have much experience on this course, last year it was a new course, so this is only the 2nd year of play here.

bulls9999 wrote:Phil -1 thru 14 (includes 3 bogies, 1 double-bogey, 5 birdies).  Makes too many bad scores to contend.  But, "he's hitting bombs", lol.

Phil rattles flagstick

The putter  saved him. What worries me is his misses are still big off the tee when he has a missed fairway. This course has no trees so he can maneuver.  He did have a water ball today. Made a 15ft par save.
He needs 4 solid rounds and to be in contention even if it doesnt lead to a victory.

I slept through the whole round!! A wild round/ride for PHIL

Well, I never got to see anything, but from the score, it looks like Phil had 3 birdies and 3 bogies.... but 2 of the 3 bogies were on the only par-5's on the course!! If you can't birdie the par-5's, at least make Par!!

Final 6 holes were on TV. I set my alarm just in time to see him miss the par putt on the par 5. He also missed a 3 to 4 birdie putt on the 7th hole . He hit it to 3 feet on the 9th his last hole to get the round back to even. With no play by play it's tough to see what hes doing.

A very decent -2 and PHIL is in the top ten

Phil is T7 6 back and not too many people to jump. He's in contention and making progress. Been awhile since we could say that.

Yes PHIL has made some progress!

Well, Phil finished at -9, T-2nd place.  Graham McDowell went on a tear, believe he will win -12/thru 17 now.  In one of his pre-finish interviews, he said he tells his children that you get to live in a nice house because 'daddy can putt', lol.

Phil got off track in round 2, where he shot even par.  Final round, just birdied holes 2, 3, 4, and all pars until a bogie at 16 and birdie at 18.  But nice to beat Koepka, nose out Dustin (unless he ties Phil with a birdie at 18).

CRAP... that's golf.... looks like Dustin Johnson eagles the last hole to take sole possession of 2nd place and bumps Phil down to 3rd!!

Well PHIL at least show some really great signs of golf life this week--Maybe I need to get hopeful about 2020?

I would like to think so, but that golf course is much like the one they're playing this week in Phoenix and the one in Palm Springs.... very little in the way of trees, fairly open course laid out in front of you. Phil is still wide off the tee, and put that on a treed course, and I'm not sure he does well, but let's see.

Admin wrote:Well PHIL at least show some really great signs of golf life this week--Maybe I need to get hopeful about 2020?

was a good week for Phil, though annoyed that Drunken Johnson made eagle on 18. Cost Phil a boatload of ranking points, which he needs to get into the WGCs and the US Open

Great to see Phil put 4 solid rounds together. Maybe their is hope.

Phil should stick to the harder courses where his experience will help him. Stay away from the birdie fests. He cannot compete in those any longer

dortt wrote:was a good week for Phil, though annoyed that Drunken Johnson made eagle on 18. Cost Phil a boatload of ranking points, which he needs to get into the WGCs and the US Open

DJ was missing putts all day until he eagles on 18 to get solo 2nd . That was so irritating. All in all progress for Phil but his misses are still to big off the tee.

Not sure if I read this correctly where ever I saw it, but it sounded like based on the positive vibes Phil got from Saudi, he's signed up for Pebble Beach?  I would have thought he had intended to play that all along as the defending reigning champion from prior year?  I suspect it must be wrong, or I read it wrong, don't you have to 'sign up for a tourney' by the preceeding Friday, so the tournament wasn't yet over in Saudi.

PHIL pretty much needs a top 3 or so to get into top 50 in world this week.

He is on the path to getting a US open spot (His spots at Augusta, PGA and OPen Champsionships are set til age 60).

bulls9999 wrote:Not sure if I read this correctly where ever I saw it, but it sounded like based on the positive vibes Phil got from Saudi, he's signed up for Pebble Beach?  I would have thought he had intended to play that all along as the defending reigning champion from prior year?  I suspect it must be wrong, or I read it wrong, don't you have to 'sign up for a tourney' by the preceeding Friday, so the tournament wasn't yet over in Saudi.

Phil said in early January he was playing 4 weeks in a row ending with Pebble.
Since he had 2 MCs he was considering adding Genesis open. It's unlikely he will get to top 50 to get into the WGC Mexico unless he wins this week. I suppose he could add Genesis and if he wins Pebble he could WD and then play Mexico. I dont think hed do 6 weeks in a row. ...

j58golf wrote:

bulls9999 wrote:Not sure if I read this correctly where ever I saw it, but it sounded like based on the positive vibes Phil got from Saudi, he's signed up for Pebble Beach?  I would have thought he had intended to play that all along as the defending reigning champion from prior year?  I suspect it must be wrong, or I read it wrong, don't you have to 'sign up for a tourney' by the preceeding Friday, so the tournament wasn't yet over in Saudi.

Phil said in early January he was playing 4 weeks in a row ending with Pebble.
Since he had 2 MCs he was considering adding Genesis open. It's unlikely he will get to top 50 to get into the WGC Mexico unless he wins this week. I suppose he could add Genesis and if he wins Pebble he could WD and then play Mexico. I dont think hed do 6 weeks in a row. ...

CBS was advertising Pebble Beach during the Waste Management tournament and they mentioned Phil was playing, so I don't think Phil just decided to enter.

Which tourney is the 'Genesis Open'? Is that the one at Riviera? They keep changing sponsors and it's hard to keep up with the new names, lol.

j58golf wrote:

bulls9999 wrote:Not sure if I read this correctly where ever I saw it, but it sounded like based on the positive vibes Phil got from Saudi, he's signed up for Pebble Beach?  I would have thought he had intended to play that all along as the defending reigning champion from prior year?  I suspect it must be wrong, or I read it wrong, don't you have to 'sign up for a tourney' by the preceeding Friday, so the tournament wasn't yet over in Saudi.

Phil said in early January he was playing 4 weeks in a row ending with Pebble.
Since he had 2 MCs he was considering adding Genesis open. It's unlikely he will get to top 50 to get into the WGC Mexico unless he wins this week. I suppose he could add Genesis and if he wins Pebble he could WD and then play Mexico. I dont think hed do 6 weeks in a row. ...

Yes its played at Riveria CC. Phil won there twice and lost in a playoff when Bill Haas sunk a 60 ft putt.

j58golf wrote:Yes its played at Riveria CC. Phil won there twice and lost in a playoff when Bill Haas sunk a 60 ft putt.

Also had that HORRIBLE loss to Charles Howell the 3rd in 2007 due to terrible putting on the second 9