PGA TourBrian KeoghAT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, Phil Mickelson, Seamus Power, Padraig Harrington, Graeme McDowell

Power makes final day as Mickelson produces Pebble Beach magic show

PGA TourBrian KeoghAT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, Phil Mickelson, Seamus Power, Padraig Harrington, Graeme McDowell
Power makes final day as Mickelson produces Pebble Beach magic show
Phil Mickelson. Photo by Darren Carroll/PGA of America

Phil Mickelson. Photo by Darren Carroll/PGA of America

Pádraig Harrington and Graeme McDowell missed the 54-hole cut but West Waterford’s Seamus Power made it with a shot to spare as defending champion Phil Mickelson lit up the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am with a mesmerising short game performance.

The left-hander (49) holed out twice from off the green and made several other outstanding up and downs in a five-under 67 that leaves him just one stroke behind Canadian Nick Taylor as he seeks his sixth win at Pebble Beach and a return to the world’s top 50.

Power is making his first PGA Tour appearance for more than two months and he’ll be pleased to make the cut for the first time in three appearances at Pebble Beach, carding a one-under 71 at Monterey Peninsula Country Club.

He was a shot outside the projected three-under par cut mark after going to the turn in two-over par. But he made an eagle three at the 10th and followed a bogey at the 15th with a birdie four at the 16th and two closing pars to finish the day tied for 44th on four-under.

It was an uphill task for Harrington and McDowell after disappointing second rounds.

Harrington began the day T89 on level par and while he covered the back nine at Spyglass Hills in one-under to get to within two shots of the cut mark, he bogeyed the fifth, sixth and eighth, carding a 74 to finish on two-over.

“It was a really good day in saving shots and hitting shots, but I’m usually okay with a wedge.”
— Phil Mickelson

McDowell was looking to build on his win the Saudi International but double-bogeyed his last two holes at Monterey Peninsula Country Club on Friday to start the day T112th on two-over and shot a one-over 73 at Pebble Beach yesterday to miss the cut by six strokes.

Leader Taylor shot a three-under 69 at Spyglass Hill to lead by one stroke from Mickelson on 17-under par.

Mickelson was in inspired form around the greens, starting at the seventh where he was plugged in the back bunker but used the greenside rough to slow his recovery, coming up inches short.

He then chipped dead at the eighth to save par and followed his lone bogey at the 12th, where he was shortsided, with a hole out from sand for birdie at the 13th.

He was struggling for his par-five at the 14th after screwing his third off the green but chipped in from 30 yards for a birdie four before getting up and down from 50 yards for birdie at the 18th by hitting a sky high parachute shot inside five feet.

“I felt like I had a pretty good day with my short game and had some pretty good shots,” Mickelson said with no little understatement.

On his save at the seventh, he said: “Yeah, it's No. 2 in my all time greatest bunker shots. So yeah, 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. This one didn't go in, but it was the second best I've ever hit. And it was, 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.”

He added: “It was a really good day in saving shots and hitting shots, but I'm usually okay with a wedge.”

Five-time AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am champion (1998, 2005, 2007, 2012, 2019), Mickelson is tied with Mark O’Meara for most wins in the event

Mickelson missed the cut in his first two PGA Tour starts of 2020 but finished tied third behind Graeme McDowell in Saudi Arabia and arrived at Pebble Beach expecting to play well.

“I felt like after playing well last week and actually I was playing very well heading into the year even though I didn't get the results the first two weeks and I had some challenges controlling my visualisation and controlling my thoughts and letting some negativity creep in,” he said. “And I had a much better control of my mind and thoughts last week and it's carrying over this week too.

On the challenge today, he said: “I have to do the same thing that I've done previously and just go shoot a good solid final round and 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.”