PGA TOUR

Mickelson (-28) lays waste to foes

Phil Mickelson holds the Phoenix Open trophy Sunday afternoon. Mickelson shot a final-round 4-under-par 67 to finish at 28-under 256, two strokes off the PGA Tour record of 254 set by Tommy Armour III in the 2003 Texas Open.
Phil Mickelson holds the Phoenix Open trophy Sunday afternoon. Mickelson shot a final-round 4-under-par 67 to finish at 28-under 256, two strokes off the PGA Tour record of 254 set by Tommy Armour III in the 2003 Texas Open.

— Phil Mickelson completed a wire-to-wire victory in the Phoenix Open, again flirting with history in a dominating run at TPC Scottsdale.

Mickelson shot a 4-under 67 on Sunday to finish at 28-under 256 in the Waste Management Phoenix Open, two strokes off the PGA Tour record of 254 set by Tommy Armour III in the 2003 Texas Open.

“It’s an important one for me, because it’s been a while since I won, been a while since I’ve been in contention,” Mickelson said. “I was certainly nervous heading into today. I think the thing I’m most excited about was the way I was able to regain control of my thoughts after a few shots early on that I didn’t care for.”

Mickelson missed a chance for a 59 in the first round when his 25-foot birdie putt on the final hole caught the right edge of the cup, curled 180 degrees and stayed out. He settled for a 60 and followed with rounds of 65 and 64 to take a six-stroke lead into the final round.

Mickelson won after struggling the past two weeks in his season-opening events - tying for 37th at La Quinta and 51st at Torrey Pines - and creating some headlines by talking about tax increases. He now heads to Pebble Beach for his title defense.

“I think that sets up the tone for the rest of the year, because I really started to play well,” Mickelson said. “But for me, the rest of the year took a turn on Tuesday when I got my new driver. It just changed my whole deal.”

Brandt Snedeker finished second, four strokes back after a 65.

“Sometimes you have to tip your hat and say, ‘Phil played unbelievable and deserved to win,”’ Snedeker said. “That’s kind of what this week was all about.”

Mickelson took a three stroke lead to the 17th tee, and nearly drove into the left-side water on the drivable par 4, his ball stopping a yard short of the hazard. He hit his 25-yard second shot 15 feet past the hole and made the birdie putt.

Mickelson parred the par-4 18th after another drive to the left, one that easily cleared the water he hit into Friday en route to a double bogey, and Snedeker closed with a bogey.

Mickelson had his third wire-to-wire victory and first since the 2006 Bell South Classic - a 13-stroke blowout the week before the second of his three Masters victories. He pushed his victory total to 41, winning for the first time since 51 weeks ago at Pebble Beach.

The victory extends Mickelson’s streak of years with at least one victory to 10, the longest active run on the tour, and he has victories in 20 seasons, third behind Sam Snead (24) and Jack Nicklaus (21). Mickelson is ninth on the career victories list, four behind No. 8 Walter Hagen. Lefty also led wire-to-wire in 2005 at Pebble Beach.

Mickelson, who was making his 24th appearance in the event that he also won in 1996 and 2005, tied the tournament scoring record set by Mark Calcavecchia in 2001, and joined Calcavecchia, Arnold Palmer and Gene Littler as the only three-time winners. With six victories in Arizona, Mickelson also matched Johnny Miller’s tour record.

The final round was played in overcast conditions after three cloudless days. Light rain even fell for a few minutes as Mickelson finished warming up on the practice green and played the first hole.

After the rain stopped, Mickelson bogeyed the par-4 second and birdied the two front-nine par 3s, pulling off his best shot of the day on No. 7.

After Snedeker, four strokes back after a birdie on No. 6, hit within 10 feet of the back-left pin to set up a birdie, Mickelson’s tee shot leaked right and stopped an inch from the back fringe, leaving him 55 feet with a 20-foot swath of fringe between his ball and the hole.

Mickelson, a 42-year-old former Arizona State golfer, decided to putt through the fringe rather than chip over it and had caddie Jim Mackay remove the flag stick. Mickelson hit it perfectly, with the ball avoiding the rough, rolling back onto the green and racing into the cup.

“The challenge of that was to judge the speed where half the putt is through fringe and half is on the green,” Mickelson said. “I got lucky to have made it, obviously. I was just trying to two-putt it. It was going fairly quickly when it got to the hole, probably would have been 6, 8 feet by. With Brandt in there close, that was a big momentum change.”

Snedeker could only shake his head and smile when the putt fell in.

“Are you kidding me?” Snedeker said. “I fully expected Phil to hit a flop shot from there. He didn’t have much of a putt, and he putted through it.

“I hit a great shot in there close and I thought, ‘Hey, I can get one on him here and put some pressure on him.’ He makes that, and he let me hear about it before I putt, and he let me know that I needed to make that to tie. We had fun with it. That’s Phil being Phil.”

Mickelson pushed the advantage back to four strokes with a two-putt birdie on the par-5 13th, his fourth consecutive birdie on the hole. Snedeker saved par after his drive stopped under jumping cholla, forcing him to take a drop for an unplayable lie.

Mickelson matched Snedeker on the next two holes, saving par on the par-4 14th with a 10-foot putt and two-putting for birdie on the par-5 15th.

Snedeker pulled within three again on the par-3 16th, hitting to 5 feet on the stadium hole.

Snedeker was coming off a second-place tie Monday at Torrey Pines, four strokes behind Tiger Woods in the fog delayed event.

“I’m running into Hall of Famers every week,” Snedeker said.

Bryce Molder (Conway) had it going for 13 holes Sunday and was positioned for a top-10 finish before ending up with a 1-under 70 to finish at 13-under 271. Molder, who earned $47.973, was 4 under for his round and at 16 under for the tournament after 13 holes, then finished par-par bogey-bogey-bogey.

Ken Duke (Henderson State, Arkadelphia) shot a 3-under 68 to finish at 10-under 274. He earned $19,881.

EUROPEAN TOUR Gallacher beats nerves

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates - Stephen Gallacher made an eagle on the 16th hole to win the Dubai Desert Classic on Sunday, overcoming early jitters to beat playing partner Richard Sterne by three shots.

Gallacher finished with a 22-under total of 266. Looking for his first European Tour victory since 2004, Gallacher (71) had a nervous start. The 111th-ranked Scotsman had a three-shot lead over Sterne but bogeyed the first two holes while Sterne birdied the second.

The two traded places several times after that, as each struggled in windy conditions. Gallacher then holed a sand wedge on No. 16 from 115 yards for an eagle that gave him a four-shot lead.

AUSTRALIAN LADIES

Webb wins it again

GOLD COAST, Australia - Karrie Webb won her eighth Australian Ladies Masters title on Sunday, coming from two strokes behind in the final round with birdies on three of her last five holes for a 5-under-par 67 and a two-stroke victory.

Webb, 38, birdied the 14th hole at Royal Pines to take the lead for the first time during the final round, and then tapped in for birdie after her eagle putt just missed on 15.

Webb finished with a 13-under-par 203 in the 54-hole tournament, the season opening event on the European Ladies Tour. Her eighth victory in the same tournament matched the PGA Tour record of Sam Snead, who won the Greater Greensboro Open eight times.

South Korea’s Chella Choi finished tied for second after a 69, with second-round co-leaders Ariya Jutanugarn of Thailand and Australian amateur Oh Su-hyun, who both shot final-round 71s.

Professional golf results

PGA Waste Management Phoenix Open At TPC Scottsdale Scottsdale, Ariz.

Purse: $6.2 million Par 71, 7,216 yards Final Round 256 (-28) (500) $1,116,000 Phil Mickelson ..................60-65-64-67 260 (-24) (300) $669,600 Brandt Snedeker ..............64-66-65-65 261 (-13) (190) $421,600 Scott Piercy ......................70-66-64-61 262 (-22) (135) $297,600 Ryan Moore .....................66-66-65-65 265 (-19) (110) $248,000 Ryan Palmer ....................64-73-66-62 266 (-18) (92) $207,700 Bill Haas (92), $207,700 ..65-64-70-67 Brendon de Jonge ............66-67-67-66 Brendan Steele .................69-65-65-67 267 (-17) (78) $173,600 Matt Every ........................65-67-69-66 Padraig Harrington ..........64-70-63-70 268 (-16) (63) $136,400 Kevin Stadler ....................68-68-69-63 Ben Crane .........................67-71-64-66 Robert Garrigus ...............66-66-69-67 Billy Horschel ...................69-68-64-67 269 (-15) (56) $111,600 Bubba Watson ..................67-67-71-64 270 (-14) (52) $84,165 David Hearn .....................67-65-73-65 Bo Van Pelt .....................68-67-71-64 Jeff Klauk .........................67-68-67-68 James Hahn .....................71-67-70-62 Gary Woodland ................67-66-67-70 Roberto Castro .................65-68-67-70 Hunter Mahan ..................67-67-67-69 Troy Matteson ..................67-65-66-72 271 (-13) (44) $47,973 Bryce Molder ............. 67-67-67-70 Chris Kirk .........................67-69-69-66 Kevin Chappell .................66-68-71-66 Brian Gay ..........................65-66-72-68 Keegan Bradley ................67-63-73-68 Bud Cauley .......................71-67-68-65 John Rollins .....................66-66-69-70 Ted Potter, Jr. ...................64-69-68-70 272 (-12) (38) $35,893 Brian Harman ...................70-65-68-69 John Mallinger .................65-69-69-69 Justin Leonard .................65-71-66-70 William McGirt .................67-66-69-70 273 (-11) (32) $27,944 Kevin Na ...........................69-64-72-68 K.J. Choi ...........................71-67-67-68 Charles Howell III .............67-68-69-69 Casey Wittenberg .............67-67-70-69 George McNeill ................70-68-68-67 Angel Cabrera ..................66-65-70-72 Greg Chalmers .................68-68-66-71 274 (-10) (26) $19,881 Cameron Tringale .............69-67-69-69 Nick Watney .....................65-71-68-70 274 (-10) (26) $19,681 Ken Duke .................. 66-69-71-68 Carl Pettersson ................72-65-69-68 Colt Knost .........................71-65-71-67 Hank Kuehne ....................65-71-72-66 275 (-9) (20) $15,302 Jeff Maggert .....................64-70-71-70 Tim Clark ..........................69-68-68-70 Rory Sabbatini .................68-66-70-71 Charlie Wi ........................68-63-71-73 Sang-Moon Bae ...............72-64-72-67 276 (-8) (16) $14,260 Lucas Glover ....................68-70-67-71 David Toms ......................69-67-71-69 Jimmy Walker ..................68-69-72-67 277 (-7) (12) $13,764 Harris English ...................67-67-73-70 James Driscoll ................72-66-69-70 Martin Flores ....................65-71-72-69 John Merrick ....................69-69-70-69 Jason Day ........................70-68-72-67 278 (-6) (9) $13,392 Chris Stroud .....................71-66-69-72 279 (-5) (8) $13,206 Boo Weekley ....................69-66-72-72 Richard H. Lee .................68-68-72-71 280 (-4) (6) $12,958 Aaron Baddeley ................69-67-73-71 Dicky Pride .......................67-71-73-69 281 (-3) (3) $12,648 David Mathis ....................72-65-70-74 Russell Henley .................69-67-74-71 J.J. Henry .........................70-68-73-70 282 (-2) (1) $12,338 Scott Verplank ..................66-72-71-73 Jeff Overton ......................66-69-75-72 283 (-1) (1) $12,090 Chad Campbell .................73-65-71-74 Y.E. Yang ..........................65-73-74-71 284 (E) (1) $11,904 Kyle Stanley ......................67-71-74-72

EUROPEAN PGA

Omega Dubai Desert Classic At Emirates Golf Club (Majlis Course) Doha Qatar

Purse: $2.5 million Par 72 7,344 yards Final 266 (-22) Stephen Gallacher ...........63-70-62-71 269 (-19) Richard Sterne ................62-70-66-71271 (-17) Felipe Aguilar ..................68-68-66-69 Thorbjorn Olesen ............67-66-67-71 272 (-16) Marcus Fraser .................67-69-69-67 Lee Westwood ................67-71-66-68 273 (-15) Ricardo Santos ...............66-71-69-67 Robert Rock ....................70-68-67-68 Steve Webster .................69-69-65-70 274 (-14) Jeev Milkha Singh ...........68-67-67-72 Tommy Fleetwood ..........65-68-69-72 275 (-13) Matteo Manassero ..........66-71-70-68 Andy Sullivan ..................69-67-69-70 Gareth Maybin ................69-67-69-70 276 (-12) Lorenzo Gagli ..................68-71-69-68 Garth Mulroy ...................71-70-66-69 277 (-11) Marc Warren ...................67-72-71-67 Jose Maria Olazabal ........70-67-71-69 Ignacio Garrido ...............69-68-70-70 Peter Lawrie Ireland .........66-70-71-70 Rafa Cabrera-Bello ..........69-69-69-70 Sergio Garcia ..................68-67-71-71 Fredrik Andersson Hed ...67-71-68-71 Andreas Harto .................67-67-71-72 Maximilian Kieffer ...........66-68-69-74 284 (-4) Todd Hamilton ................70-68-70-76 Mark O’Meara .................67-74-71-72

AUSTRALIAN LADIES MASTERS At RACV Royal Pines Resort Gold Coast, Australia Purse: $261,330 Par 72 6,647 yards a-amateur Final 203 (-13) Karrie Webb .........................70-66-67 205 (-11) Chella Choi ...........................69-67-69 Ariya Jutanugarn ..................69-65-71 a-Oh Su-hyun .......................70-64-71 206 (-10) Jessica Korda .......................67-68-71 207 (-9) Stacey Keating .....................68-67-72 209 (-7) Pernilla Lindberg ..................70-67-72 Dori Carter ............................68-69-72 210 (-6) Ryu So-yeon ........................71-70-69 211 (-5) Alison Walshe ......................66-71-74212 (-4) Hannah Burke ......................72-71-69 Nontaya Srisawang ..............68-70-74 213 (-3) Sara Maude Juneau .............72-73-68 Sarah Kemp .........................71-70-72 Amelia Lewis ........................71-69-73 214 (-2) Carlota Ciganda ....................75-69-70 Lee Jee-young .....................71-73-70 Joanna Klatten .....................70-73-71 a-Minjee Lee ........................71-70-73 Belen Mozo ..........................68-71-75 215 (-1) Caroline Hedwall ..................72-72-71 Kristie Smith ........................70-73-72 Marianne Skarpnord ............70-72-73 216 (E) Becky Brewerton ..................74-69-73 Nikki Campbell .....................70-72-74 Maria Hernandez ..................70-71-75 217 (+1) Daniela Holmqvist ................69-76-72 Xi Yulin China ........................74-71-72 Dawn Shockley ....................72-73-72 Gwladys Nocera ...................70-72-75 Carly Booth ..........................71-71-75 Sarah-Jane Smith ................72-68-77 218 (+2) Cheyenne Woods .................74-72-72 Jiyai Shin ..............................71-74-73 Whitney Hillier ......................76-69-73 Cecilie Lundgreen ................74-71-73 Alexandra Vilatte ..................72-71-75 Pornanong Phatlum .............71-72-75 Daniela Iacobelli ....................75-68-75 219 (+3) Stephanie Na ........................73-73-73 Sophie Gustafson ................74-72-73 Giulia Sergas ........................73-72-74 Lee Il-hee .............................74-70-75 220 (+4) Jessica Speechley ................73-73-74 221 (+5) Laura Davies ........................76-70-75 Jennifer Gleason ..................72-73-76 Nicole Smith ........................76-68-77 Linda Wessberg ...................70-71-80 222 (+6) Jacqueline Hedwall ..............73-73-76 Holly Aitchison .....................74-72-76 Katherine Hull-Kirk ...............74-72-76 Beth Allen .............................71-72-79 223 (+7) Elisa Serramia Neundorf ......76-70-77 Mallory Fraiche ....................74-72-77 Karen Lunn ..........................72-74-77 Aimee Neff ...........................73-72-78 Christel Boeljon ....................73-72-78 Samantha Whittle ................74-70-79 Caroline Bon ........................70-71-82

Sports, Pages 13 on 02/04/2013

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