Mickelson feels good about his ridiculous score. The trick to hitting a mud ball and celebrity quotes.

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Mickelson’s debut at the FBR Open was more of a fizzle than a roar. Phil not only missed the cut but appeared to be in self-denial as well.

“It doesn’t feel as far off as the score indicates,” Mickelson said. “I know the score is ridiculous. But it doesn’t feel bad.”

One interpretation of the above statement may be that, although Phil struck the ball well, it did not go where it was intended, which caused him to search through the cacti on more than one occasion. But Mickelson must have been concentrating his thoughts more on the Arizona Cardinals point spread more than to believe that he wasn’t at all rusty, hitting only eight of twenty-eight fairways and flying several greens with his usually faithful lob wedge. At least Phil made it to the finish line at last year’s FBR Open before finally succumbing to J.B. Holmes, who came back from the brink of defeat to trounce Mickelson. Come to think of it, Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Santonio Holmes made an extraordinary last-ditch effort to clinch the Super Bowl title from Arizona. Hmmm…icing on the cake?

The younger guns are making it more difficult for guys like Mickelson to get an easy ride, showing laser-like driving accuracy and length off the tee but there is still room for the forty-and-over age group. In other words, there is still light at the end of the tunnel, Phil, even as you approach middle age.

Vijay Singh, for example, climbed to the number-one position on the PGA Tour at forty-one years of age. Another notable, Colin Mongomerie, has recently been tapped to lead Team Europe after his inability to make the cut in the 2008 Ryder Cup. Perhaps instead of playing in the Champions Tour later in their careers, former professional golfing notables will be taking the desk at the Golf Channel, as captains of the Presidents/Ryder Cup or as hosts of their own charity events.

With Tiger Woods still out of commission and without a comeback date in mind, time is still on Mickelson’s side but spending a few extra hours on the practice green and better decision-making where the driver is concerned could only help get his game in gear sooner rather than later.

Golf for Beginners also talks about the interesting way the mud ball flies and we pick out a few interesting celebrity quotes.

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“Shiny Tech” courtesy of Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)”

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