OAKMONT, Pa. – Phil Mickelson has been biting his tongue for a few days. Yesterday, after shooting a maddening second-round 77 that sabotaged his chances of winning the title he craves most, he unleashed a controlled but pointed diatribe aimed directly at the USGA for its diabolical U.S. Open setup.
Mickelson came into this week nursing an injured left wrist, which he hurt Memorial Day weekend while practicing chipping out of the heavy rough around Oakmont’s greens.
The injury prevented him from his pretournament preparation routine, which includes playing the event the week before a major. This week, he played two practice rounds of nine holes each before the competition began.
“It’s disappointing to dream as a kid about winning the U.S. Open and spend all this time getting ready for it and have the course setup cause an injury,” Mickelson said. “You’re trying to win and hit great shots, but you’re also trying to not end your career on one shot – or at least suspend it for a while.”
Adding insult to his injury and poor play, Mickelson, who all day was clinging to the cut line at 11-over, was unceremoniously eliminated from weekend play when leader Angel Cabrera birdied his last hole of the day, No. 9, to get to even par.
It marked the second time in 17 U.S. Opens that Mickelson, a runner-up in this event four of the previous eight years, has missed the cut.
Because of what happened to him, Mickelson conceded that this incident will cause him to re-evaluate his preparation routine for major championships.
“Absolutely, I’m going to have to change things,” he said. “This really was dangerous doing what I did, because the rough was twice as long (three weeks ago) and I thought that they may play it like that (for the tournament). Certainly, with this liquid fertilizer and these new machines that make the grass suck straight up, it absolutely is dangerous.”
USGA championship chairman Jim Hyler, asked about his reaction to Mickelson blaming the USGA for his injury, said, “I don’t have any comment about that. We listen to what [Mickelson] says, but that does not impact the way we set up the course.”
Mickelson’s undoing yesterday came during a tumultuous four-hole stretch at Nos. 7, 8, 9 and 10 – a stretch he predicted would haunt many players this week.
Tuesday he called it “the toughest stretch in all of golf,” adding, “That is the stretch that will eliminate the majority of the field.”
Mickelson, who birdied Nos. 4 and 6 to climb back to 2-over for the tournament, doubled No. 7, bogeyed No. 8 and No. 9 then four-putted No. 10 for another double. He left the sixth green 2-over and walked to the 11th tee 8-over and reeling.
“I got off to a good start, but 7, 8, 9 and 10 is a tough stretch and that did me in,” Mickelson said. “That hurt.”
It hurt more than his ailing wrist.