It’s the championship that one of golf’s great Major winners needs to complete the career Grand Slam. Yet Phil Mickelson, approaching 55, is cognisant that the sun has almost set on his US Open career.
Affectionately known as ”Lefty” by his fans, Mickelson is set to tee it up at Oakmont Country Club next week, the fifth and final year of his exemption into the USGA’s marquee event off the back of his from his age-defying PGA Championship win in 2021.
That was Mickelson’s sixth Major victory, and made him the oldest Major winner at 50, surpassing Julius Boros who won the 1968 PGA Championship at the age of 48.
Mickelson had previously claimed three Masters titles (2004, 2006 and 2010) as well as the 2005 PGA Championship at Baltusrol.
When Lefty won the 2013 Open Championship at Muirfield, that put him a US Open away from joining the exclusive circle of men who have won all four.
In April, Rory McIlroy completed the feat after 11 years of failure with his victory at The Masters. Mickelson has famously finished second a record six times at the US Open, first to Payne Stewart at Pinehurst in 1999, and then in 2002, 2004, 2006, 2009 and 2013.
Speaking ahead of this weeks LIV Golf event in Virginia, which begins on Friday at the Robert Trent Jones (RTJ) Golf Club, Mickelson was asked about the future beyond one of golfs greatest Major championship venues.
“I haven’t thought about it too much,” Mickelson said. “There’s a high likelihood that it will be, but I haven’t really thought about it too much.”
However, Mickelson feels that RTJ will provide a good test and preparation for next weeks Major.
“We have greens that are rolling 14 to 15 on the Stimpmeter just like we will next week,” Mickelson said. “We have contours, undulations just like we will next week. I think it’s a great way to prepare for [the US Open] without minimising the effects of this week.”
There are ways for Mickelson to qualify for next year’s US Open at Shinnecock Hills and beyond. When questioned about whether the Californian would enter 36-hole final qualifying, to which Mickelson answered, “I don’t know. I haven’t thought that far [ahead].”
The USGA also has the option of granting Mickelson a special exemption into the championship, as it did in 2021 when the US Open returned to Torrey Pines – a sentimental venue for the San Diego native.
Mickelson initially accepted the exemption, which would have marked his 30th US Open appearance, but ultimately didn’t need it after earning a spot in the field through his victory at Kiawah.
Photo: Gallo Images
