Phil Mickelson entered this past weekend's PGA Championship as the 115th ranked golfer in the world, devoid of a top-10 finish in a major in nearly five years. But he left this past weekend's PGA Championship with hardware, and as the new answer to an age-old trivia question.
At the age of 50, Mickelson became the oldest major winner in PGA Tour history on Sunday, outlasting Brooks Koepka and Louis Oosthuizen by two shots with a 1-over 73 at Kiawah Island's Ocean Course in South Carolina. It was the sixth major victory of Mickelson's career, and his first since 2013.
Golf Channel analyst Matt Adams joined After Hours with Amy Lawrence on Monday to discuss Mickelson's historic, age-defying accomplishment.
"The primary [moment] that's going to stick with me will be what happened when he was coming down 18, and you saw the physical personification of the love that golf fans have for Phil Mickelson," Adams said. "There was no way that the security there was going to keep those people from, in some cases, physically embracing Phil Mickelson, but at least surrounding him in such a way. That will be the thing that I will take away, most distinctively.
"The other thing, on a more technical side, will be the fact that Phil Mickelson led the field in tee-to-green strokes gained. Now, strokes gained is a measure in the game against the average of the field. So, Phil was up more than 12 strokes against the average of the field. Now, we're talking about Phil here, who traditionally blasts it wherever the heck he blasts it and then he wedges it onto the green with great accuracy and takes it from there. To lead the field in tee-to-green strokes gained means Phil had control over his game in a way that sometimes he does not, the majority of the time he does not...
"I heard you mention Tom Brady, in a year in which we're seeing things from athletes who are supposedly well past the expiration date. It's remarkable that, once again, we as sports fans were able to watch history happen right before us. And so many times, history swirls around us and we don't recognize it until we look back upon it... We saw a guy firmly stuck into at least the top-10 of golfers all-time, right before our eyes."
With the PGA Championship victory, Mickelson surpassed Julius Boros as the oldest major winner. Boros was 48 when he won the 1968 PGA Championship in San Antonio. Mickelson also became the first player in PGA Tour history to win tournaments 30 years apart, and just the 10th player to win majors in three decades.
The entire conversation between Adams and Lawrence can be accessed in the audio player above.
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