Mickelson craves US Open win in own back yard

PHIL Mickelson should feel completely at home when the US Open gets underway today.

The American grew up in San Diego and played high school matches at Torrey Pines. His photograph hangs from the concourse in the local airport, along with other famous athletes from the city.

So far, however, this major has been anything but friendly to the big left-hander. A 34-time winner on the US PGA Tour, Mickelson is winless in 17 attempts at the US national championship, and he's tied with Sam Snead for the most close calls, with four runner-up finishes at the US Open.

It's becoming Mickelson's bogey, much as the Masters was for Greg Norman. "Well, I love it," Mickelson said. "I just haven't gotten the love back."

He's had plenty of satisfaction back from this scenic oceanside, canyon-filled course on other occasions, when his hometown galleries cheered him on to three Buick Invitational victories – but none of these has come since the course was revamped in 2001 for the US Open.

"I haven't putted the greens as well since the redesign," said Mickelson, who has spent countless hours on the golf course with short game coach Dave Pelz to rectify that. "I should have done it five years ago when I knew the Open was going to be here. But I've been spending a lot of time on the greens to where I feel that not only this week but at future Buicks, I'll know the breaks of the greens and how they'll react, and I should have that local knowledge again on the greens."

One thing he already has back is his health. A year ago, Mickelson injured his wrist while practising out of deep rough at Oakmont for the US Open. He had to withdraw from the Memorial, missed the cut at the US Open and endured what turned out to be a lost summer.

Mickelson has won four tournaments since then, including the European Tour's HSBC Champions event in Shanghai, and he said he's feeling better than ever, save for a bout of suspected food poisoning. "I've had kind of a rough week, but I feel great now," he said.

He looked fine during a practice round on Tuesday, when he drew a boisterous gallery armed with constantly-clicking cameras that won't be permitted come Thursday and throngs of autograph hounds, many of whom he accommodated before capping his pen and apologising to the rest.

"I want to make sure my energy is up this week," Mickelson explained later. "This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for me to compete in the US Open on the course I grew up on in the prime of my career. And so I want to give myself every opportunity to play my best golf this week."

Mickelson has cancelled all his extracurricular activities to focus on the 72 holes he's dreamed of playing in Southern California ever since he was a little boy scurrying across city-owned Balboa Golf Course at dusk with his dad on all-you-can-play rates after school until it was pitch black.

"We'd get stranded at 13 or 14 and hike through the cavern or cliff and climb down it to get back to the car," Mickelson said. "Those are some of the fondest memories I have of my game."

And he'd love nothing more than to make more memories this weekend at Torrey Pines. "This is a tournament I know and believe I can win," Mickelson said. "I think this course gives me the best opportunity available to do that. Winning this tournament would be something that would help define my career."

Mickelson hasn't deciphered what exactly has kept him from passing American golf's toughest test, which this time measures a record 7,643 yards.

"I just think that it's a very penalising test of golf, always has been," Mickelson said. "What I love about this week is that short game will be a factor. In the past the thick primary rough has gone right up to the edge of the green. Here there's a five-yard layer of rough that's tough, but a skilful player around the greens can get the ball close. Having short game as a factor is advantageous to me, gives me a better opportunity to get in contention for the weekend. "I think this golf course tests not only your long game, certainly the longest golf course we play, but also your short game."

And it will test his nerves, too. Mickelson is paired with the game's biggest fan favourite, Tiger Woods, who's recovering from knee surgery, and Australian Adam Scott, for the first two rounds. "I think that it's awesome," Mickelson said. "I wish that we had it more. I haven't in the past liked the way the PGA Tour puts us on opposite ends every week. I think it's great that a major championship has us paired together, because usually one end of the tee times has an advantage over the other.

"I've certainly been on the good end a number of times and I'm not complaining, but there are times when you're not on the good end, and for us to be on the same end I think makes it a fair championship. And to be paired together is even better."

TEE TIMES

US Open first round (Torrey Pines GC, San Diego, California; USA unless stated; all times Local; (x) denotes amateurs

Starting at first hole:

0700 Patrick Sheehan, D.A. Points, David Hearn (Can)

0711 Kyle Stanley, Casey Wittenberg, Hunter Haas

0722 Tway Kevin, Jason Bohn, Dean Wilson

0733 Fredrik Jacobson (Swe), Jeff Wilson, Brett Quigley

0744 Rickie Fowler, Chris Kirk, Dustin Johnson

0755 Oliver Wilson (Gbr), Mark Calcavecchia, Joe Ogilvie

0806 Phil Mickelson, Adam Scott (Aus), Tiger Woods

0817 Lee Janzen, Steve Flesch, Rich Beem

0828 Jesper Parnevik (Swe), Michael Campbell (Nzl), Todd Hamilton

0839 Miguel Angel Jimenez (Spa), Boo Weekley, Shingo Katayama (Jpn)

0850 Anthony Kim, Andres Romero (Arg), Ryuji Imada (Jpn)

0901 Mike Gilmore, Jordan Cox, Brian Kortan

0912 Jeffrey Bors, Sean English, Travis Bertoni

1230 Jon Mills (Can), DJ Brigman, Jarrod Lyle (Aus)

1241 Nick Taylor (Can), Charlie Beljan, Rob Rashell

1252 Sergio Garcia (Spa), Stewart Cink, Vijay Singh (Fij)

1303 Trevor Immelman (Rsa), Zach Johnson, Mike Weir (Can)

1314 Retief Goosen (Rsa), Scott Verplank, Aaron Baddeley (Aus)

1325 Stephen Ames (Can), Robert Allenby (Aus), Ben Curtis

1336 Angel Cabrera (Arg), Padraig Harrington (Irl), Davis Love III

1347 Bubba Watson, Brett Wetterich, J.B. Holmes

1358 Brandt Snedeker, Jonathan Byrd, Nick Dougherty (Gbr)

1409 Ross Fisher (Gbr), Steve Marino, Michael Letzig

1420 Brandt Jobe, Phillip Archer (Gbr), Jason Gore

1431 Bobby Collins, Jay Choi (Kor), Kevin Silva

1442 Bob Gaus, Philippe Gasnier (Bra), Garrett Chaussard

Starting at tenth hole:

0700 Peter Tomasulo, Robert Garrigus, Craig Barlow

0711 Derek Fathauer, Scott Piercy, Justin Hicks

0722KJ Choi (Kor), Jim Furyk, Steve Stricker

0733 Rocco Mediate, Michael Thompson, Brad Bryant

0744 Craig Parry (Aus), Robert Karlsson (Swe), Tim Clark (Rsa)

0755 Jerry Kelly, Stuart Appleby (Aus), Lee Westwood (Gbr)

0806 Pat Perez, Woody Austin, Thomas Levet (Fra)

0817 Matt Kuchar, Mathew Goggin (Aus), Nick Watney

0828 Heath Slocum, Rodney Pampling (Aus), Niclas Fasth (Swe)

0839 Carl Pettersson (Swe), Soren Hansen (Den), Daniel Chopra (Swe)

0850 Johan Edfors (Swe), Eric Axley, Ben Crane

0901 Joey Lamielle, Michael Quagliano, Fernando Figueroa (Svk)

0912 Yohann Benson (Can), Chris Devlin (NIrl), Brian Bergstol

1230 Michael Allen, Jon Turcott, Scott Sterling

1241 Artemio-hiromasa Murakami (Phi), Robert Dinwiddie (Sco), Kevin Streelman

1252 Bart Bryant, Chad Campbell, D.J. Trahan

1303 Richard Sterne (Rsa), Hunter Mahan, Sean O'Hair

1314 Ian Poulter (Gbr), Paul Casey (Gbr), Luke Donald (Gbr)

1325 Toru Taniguchi (Jpn), John Rollins, Henrik Stenson (Swe)

1336 Justin Rose (Gbr), Geoff Ogilvy (Aus), Ernie Els (Rsa)

1347 Camilo Villegas (Col), Charles Howell III, Martin Kaymer (Ger)

1358 Justin Leonard, Mark O'Meara, Jeff Quinney

1409 Rory Sabbatini (Rsa), David Toms, Colin Montgomerie (Sco)

1420 John Mallinger, John Merrick, Alastair Forsyth (Sco)

1431 Ross McGowan (Gbr), Ian Leggatt (Can), Chris Stroud

1442 John Ellis, Jimmy Henderson, Andrew Dresser