Phil Mickelson came up a little short in his bid to win the 2013 U.S. Open in June, so instead he went out and won a different major tournament for the first time ever. With a historic final round on Sunday, Lefty was victorious at the British Open to secure his fifth major championship.
Afterwards Mickelson discussed the range of emotions he’s felt since his crushing Open loss at Merion Golf Club, where he led going into the final round and even on the back nine at one point. Turns out that failure only served to fire him up.
“It’s a huge difference in emotions,” Mickelson said at a news conference after claiming the Claret Jug for the first time. “Being so down after the U.S. Open, to come back and use it as motivation, to use it as a springboard, knowing that I’m playing well and to push me a little bit extra to work harder, to come out on top, in a matter of a month to turn it around it really feels amazing.”
Mickelson shot 5-under par 66 yesterday, matching the low round of the tournament, to finish at 3-under 281. The victory, his fifth major title, pays Mickelson 945,000 pounds ($1.44 million).
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Too bad for Mickelson though, because with the British out of the way, the U.S. Open is the only major that still eludes him.
>> Mickelson Rebounds From Merion Heartache to Win British Open [Bloomberg]