Fifty is the new thirty. At least that’s what Lefty must believe as he just made history at the PGA championship, becoming the oldest player to ever win a major championship in PGA history. Jack Nicklaus’ improbable run to become the 1986 Masters champion stands out to many as a memorable “player defeats father time” example in sports. However the previous holder of “oldest player to win a major” title actually belonged to Julius Boros who also won the PGA Championship back in 1968 at the age of 48. Phil meanwhile, is a little over 3 weeks shy of his 51st birthday.
Paired with Brooks Koepka for the final round, Mickelson posted a +1 score to capture his 6th major, and 2nd career Wannamaker trophy. Phil was the co-leader through 36 holes, and the solo leader following Saturday’s round en route to his 45th tour victory.
In typical Phil fashion, he saw his lead balloon to as much as 5 strokes, only to have things tighten up down the stretch. The roller coaster ride made for great TV as Phil continually put himself in, and then got himself out of trouble from his opening tee shot to his final putt. Perhaps no shot was more iconic than his sand save from the greenside bunker at hole 5 where he holed out from a seemingly impossible angle.
Mickelson wrapped up the tournament with 22 birdies on the weekend which marked his first win on tour since the 2019 Pebble Beach Pro-Am event. It’s also only his 3rd victory in the last 8 years. That being said, Phil joins some illustrious company with the victory becoming only the 14th man in PGA history to win 6 or more major titles in his career.
As golfers finished up their rounds, and it became increasingly clear that Mickelson could actually pull off the impossible, the course took on an all too familiar scene in the homestretch. Walking up 18, Kiawah Island became eerily reminiscent of Tiger walking down 18 at the 2018 tour championship, as thousands of grown men swarmed the 18th fairway to get a good glimpse of Phil making golf history.
To be fair, golf is a sport that takes pride in its buttoned up, archaic emphasis on decorum. And with the amount of clunkers that most tournaments wind up being, when the odd historic moment comes around, you can almost feel the childlike excitement in the air getting thicker by the hole. So while some viewers may have been watching from home thinking “what idiots” at the sight of adults jockeying for position around the 18th green, at the end of the day what took place Sunday is good for the sport.
Now, all eyes will be on Mickelson heading into the US Open at Torrey Pines on June 17th (ironically the day after Phil’s 51st birthday). The US Open is the only remaining major trophy Mickelson hasn’t won, though not for lack of effort. Phil has come in 2nd (or tied for 2nd) an agonizing 6 times over the course of his career. Making matters worse is that many of these 2nd place finishes were the result of self inflicted wounds during the final rounds. Needless to say, the US Open has not been kind to Phil over the years. However following the strong start to finish performance in South Carolina this weekend, perhaps Lefty still has a little magic left in the tank. And maybe, just maybe, his birthday wish can come true a few weeks from now, and finally accomplish the career grand slam that has eluded him over the decades.
-Kyle Skinner
Twitter: @JKyleSkinner