PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. – Phil doing Phil things never gets old.
On a spectacular Saturday stage shared by celebrities, sports stars and some of golf’s biggest names, Phil Mickelson queued up a highlight reel all by himself at Pebble Beach, somehow pulling off a 5-under-67 to pull within one shot of the lead held by Nick Taylor heading into Sunday’s final round of the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.
As crowds craned their necks to try and catch a glimpse of the likes of Bill Murray, Macklemore and Ray Romano and stars from the football world including Eli and Peyton Manning, Aaron Rodgers, Larry Fitzgerald and Tony Romo, Lefty triggered more roars than anyone with some Mickelson magic around the greens.
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Hitting only nine greens in regulation, Mickelson called on remarkable wedge work to salvage his round that needed just 22 putts. Time after time, just when you thought he was headed down a bogey trail, he found safe footing with an assortment of astounding chips, pitches, flops and bunker blasts.
“It seemed like my short game was pretty good today, I thought,” he said with a wry smile. “It was a really good day in saving shots and hitting shots, but I’m usually OK with a wedge.
“You just got to get the ball in the hole somehow. And on a day that was tough, conditions with a lot of wind and firm greens, I thought it was difficult to make a lot of birdies. And I ended up saving some pars and made some good saves and then holed out a couple, too.”
Seemed his short game was pretty good? Yeah, and Pebble Beach is just a golf course. Chasing his record-breaking sixth title here, Mickelson began his third round with a birdie on one from short range, then set up a birdie on two with a brilliant shot from a greenside bunker. He hit solid chips to save par on five and to set up a birdie on six. He nearly holed out from the bunker on the eighth and then did hole out from a bunker on 13 for birdie. And he ended his round with a stunning flop shot on 18 to set up his last birdie.
Still, there were two short shots that stood out.
Let’s go to the iconic par-3 seventh, where Mickelson missed the green from 100 yards and was nearly buried in the back bunker with little green to work with. He purposely landed the ball in the rough and made it bounce onto the green, where it rolled out two feet from the cup. He tapped in for par.
“It’s No. 2 in my all-time greatest bunker shots. I made one in the final round at Memorial, Muirfield Village, the old 16th hole from under the lip, plugged, and I holed that one,” Mickelson said. “This one didn’t go in, but it was the second best I’ve ever hit. I was just trying to not make 5. I was trying to get on the green and just make a 4, give myself a putt at a par. But it came out great.”
Now go to the par-5 14th, where, after laying up, Mickelson spun his third off the green into a divot-marred section, 90 feet from the pin. He chipped it in for birdie.
Mickelson is now in position to break a tie with Tiger Woods for PGA Tour wins in California, each currently with 14. Taylor is at 17 under, Mickelson 16 under and Jason Day 14 under. Now one else is within five shots of the lead.
Strong winds are in the forecast for Sunday’s final round, ones coming in from off the sea at a steady clip of 20 mph with others gusting to 25 mph.
“I have to do the same thing that I’ve done previously,” said Mickelson, who has continued his good form after a tie for third in last week’s Saudi International. “Just get off to a good start and take advantage of those first six, seven holes where you can make some birdies and then carry that momentum through some of the challenging holes and then finish strong with some birdies. too.”
Taylor has yet to blink and is eying a wire-to-wire triumph, as a 63 at Monterey Peninsula gave him the lead after 18, a 66 at Pebble the lead after 36, and a 69 at Spyglass the lead through 54 holes. He is looking for his second PGA Tour title and his first in six years.
“I haven’t been in this spot for a while,” Taylor said. “So I just got to keep my head down, do my thing and keep playing, because I’ve been playing well.”
Dealing with Pebble and the pressure will be tough enough, but Sunday will also be the first time Taylor will play with Mickelson.
“I’m sure I won’t be the crowd favorite,” Taylor said. “I’ve just got to do my own thing, try to block all that out. Easier said than done, without having to do it before, but I’ll do the best I can.”
He’s done some good work at Pebble Beach – he tied for 43rd in last year’s U.S. Open here and tied for 28th in last year’s AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.
Day is looking to break a two-year winless drought. His game has rounded into form this week as he continues a vigorous rehab program to treat his troublesome back. He’s had a few aches and pains but his play has left him feeling as well as he has in months.
“My putting’s decent and my short game’s pretty good. I just need to hit a few more greens tomorrow,” he said. “Now, granted, it’s going to be a little bit tougher tomorrow with the wind, but I think there is definitely more opportunities over there in wind like this just because of the par-5s are reachable and whatnot.
“It’s exciting to be among it. Obviously there’s going to be a few nerves out there, but I think Nick and Phil and everyone’s going to have nerves. But once you get into it then you start to focus on what you need to do, so I think things are going to be fun tomorrow, I’m definitely looking forward to being back in the hunt.”
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