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 Phil Mickelson's best finish in 2010 is a tie for eighth at the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am (PHOTO: Mark Susson). For Phil Mickelson, it’s about righting the ship in the area that counts most — scoring — as he prepares for the Masters, arguably the most important event on his schedule. To that end, he’s decided to enter next week’s Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill in Orlando, Fla., in addition to competing in the Shell Houston Open the week before the year’s first major. “I am not playing as — or scoring, I should say, as well as I need to heading into Augusta,” Mickelson said following last weekend’s World Golf Championships-CA Championship at Doral, where he tied for 14th. “I need to get in contention in one of these events coming up to really give myself the best chance heading into Augusta.” The San Diego native headed into 2010 with high hopes after ending 2009 with wins in two of his final three events. However, this season has been a struggle, as the 39-year-old has notched only one top-10 finish and not come close to defending his title at either the Northern Trust Open or CA Championship. Lefty found himself in the center of a controversy earlier this year when he was one of a select group of players using pre-1990 Ping Eye-2 wedges to take advantage of a loophole in the Tour’s new groove rule, and he made more headlines with his equipment at Doral by putting two drivers in his bag for the first round. The problem for Mickelson in 2010 has been putting, an aspect of his game he felt had improved significantly at the end of last year thanks to the tutelage of Redlands resident and former PGA champion Dave Stockton. “I think it might be my setup is off with the putter, and I’ll see if I can get it dialed in this week,” said Mickelson. While Mickelson sits out this week’s Transitions Championship to prepare for his Masters push, plenty of other golfers with Southern California ties are in the tournament field. Here are some notable competitors who will set to claim the title on the challenging Copperhead Course at Innisbrook Resort in Tampa, Fla.: Rickie Fowler. The 21-year-old Murrieta native already has almost $1 million in earnings this season and has established a good-looking Rookie of the Year duel with Alex Prugh. Paul Goydos. Following a missed cut at the Honda Classic and tying for 70th at the Waste Management Phoenix Open, the Long Beach native will look to rediscover the form that netted him ties for fifth at both the Northern Trust Open and AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am. Charley Hoffman. An early candidate for Most Disappointing Player of the year is the Poway native, who’s missed four of his first six cuts and finished no better than tied for 35th. Bill Lunde. The Poway native had a respectable showing at last year’s Transitions Championship, finishing tied for 27th. John Mallinger. Also tying for 27th at the Transitions a year ago was Mallinger, who has made only one cut in 2010. Kevin Na. After opening with a horrid 78 at the CA Championship, the former Diamond Bar resident rebounded with three 70s and tied for 50th. Corey Pavin. The Ventura native, who last played on the PGA Tour at Pebble Beach in February, tied for seventh in the Champions Tour’s Toshiba Classic at Newport Beach Country Club earlier this month. Pat Perez. The last time the former San Diego resident played a Tour event in Florida, he tied for fourth at the 2009 Arnold Palmer Invitational. Charlie Wi. The Florida Swing has been kind to the North Hills resident. In 2009, he tied for ninth at the Honda Classic and tied for fourth at the Transitions Championship, and this year he recorded an eighth-place finish at the Honda. Local Focus is an online-only weekly analysis of the PGA Tour and other national circuits from a Southern California perspective. OTHER LOCAL FOCUS FEATURES: Kim heads to Doral with momentum Local players to watch at Champions Tour's Toshiba Classic Southern Californians at the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship |
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