Brian makes his Pebble Beach plays and discusses the similarities between Lefty on the links and Rex on the gridiron.
Can anyone tell me what Phil Mickelson was doing playing quarterback during the second half of the Super Bowl? The contexts are different but I looked at Rex Grossman and saw Mickelson on the 72nd hole of Winged Foot.
Grossman can take some refuge in the coaching and team sport part of his context. Who was calling the plays for the Bears in the second half? Grossman should have recognized the coverage, granted, but downfield plays should have been off the table.
There are myriad other contextual differences: Grossman is 26, essentially a rookie, was starting in his first Super Bowl and going against a superior team. Mickelson is 36, has been playing for fifteen years and went into the U.S. Open last year with two consecutive major wins under his belt because he put the *$#!@ driver away when he needed to.
Mickelson didn't need an offensive coordinator to tell him to take out anything but the driver on the last hole at Winged Foot last summer---he had the experience to make the decision for himself. And yet.
There's the relative speed of the two sports, the huge difference in physicality, the much different spotlights on each event, and on and on. But there was Mickelson Face on Grossman in Miami, rain pouring, hopes dashed after a dumb decision begat another dumb decision.
We've seen Mickelson Face on Mickelson already a few times this year; I wonder if the damage from last June is even worse than I thought it might be. This is the time of year Mickelson normally thrives. So far he's been anything but spectacular with a tie for 45th, tie for 51st and last week's missed cut.
On Friday, NBC followed him on some of the early holes. He was 2-over through three. This was a guy who knew coming into the round that he needed to make up ground to make the cut and he starts off bogey, birdie, double bogey? A scorecard all over the place is nothing new for Mickelson, but that double bogey was partly due to a terrible chip from just off the green. From just off the green he's normally one of the best in the world.
At this point it's too early to tell what's up with Lefty, if this stumble out of the gate is symptomatic of longer lasting damage. But seeing Mickleson Face in the Super Bowl reminded me of Winged Foot, and how uniquely painful that was to watch. Imagine what it will always feel like to Mickelson, whose dilemma is that he is smart enough and mature enough to recognize that he made a huge mistake, but also smart enough and mature enough to realize that even though he was smart enough and mature enough he still acted under the counsel of Bad Old Phil. He's got to be wondering if he'll ever be able to slay the dark side.
Last week: Another near-miss in the outright as Bart Bryant came a little unhinged on the back nine, ultimately finishing in fourth place at the FBR. But I did win the head-to-head as Mark Calcavecchia finished higher than Geoff Ogilvy (both missed the cut). At 6-5, 1 unit, that was $1,200. Subtract $500 for the head-to-head picks and I finished plus $700 for the week.
At this week's AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am, take Troy Matteson (33-1), 1/6 unit in the outright: Here's a guy worth watching all year. He's coming off a very good rookie campaign in which he won his first tournament on Tour (Frys) and made $1.7 million. He finished off 2006 particularly strongly with five straight top 10 finishes, including the win in mid-October.
Matteson has started 2007 on that note with tie for 11th, tie for 28th, tie for 23rd and tie for 14th last week in Arizona. The format of the Pebble pro-am - - annoying celebrities slowing everything down, mainly - - is always a wild card in terms of how players respond. Some love it. Some hate it, and so don't play it even though it's on one of the world's most famous courses. Matteson must not have been too distracted last year; he finished T27.
Take Vijay Singh (7-1), 1/6 unit: I've said it before and I'll say it again - - Don't forget about Vijay. Since the win at the Mercedes he's gone T34, T39 before finishing seventh last week with a 64 on Sunday. He's got a strong record at Pebble, including a win three years ago.
Take Luke Donald (12-1), 1/6 unit: Two top 10s in his two tournaments this year before taking the last few weeks off. You would think the courses would suit his precision game (especially Pebble) and that Cool Hand Luke would be able to deal with the distractions of the pro-am. And and you would be right: T7, T11, and T17 in his last three trips to the Monterey Peninsula.
SBR Top-Rated Sportsbooks
Brian Gabrielle: Pebble Beach Pro-Am
Reply With Quote