Phil Mickelson drops out of PGA Grand Slam, putting finishing touches on a great collapse

Back when I was a child actor, big things were expected of me. Every blue moon someone will come up and ask “Hey, weren’t you that kid in Bugsy Malone?” I’m forced to say yes, and the memories come flooding back. Mostly of what a little bitch Jodie Foster was.

William K. Wolfrum (left) next to Scott Baio in the film “Bugsy Malone.”

Anyway, it saddened me that my career tanked not long after. I did a guest starring role on “TJ Hooker” as William Shatner’s illegitimate, long-lost kid, then several years later starred in an ill-advised German porn called “Wolf-RAM!” before giving it all up to go to golf blogging school.

So I know of what I speak when I talk of falling from grace, and let me just say, my descent was nothing near the collapse that Phil Mickelson went through this year.

Let’s face it, Phil had a mind-boggling 2006, that has come to an end with him pulling out of the PGA Grand Slam of Golf in Hawaii, and telling the PGA of America that he is done for the season.

It was just April that Lefty blitzkrieged the Bell South Classic, then won the Masters the very next week. What we were hearing then was that the battle had finally been joined, that by winning three of seven majors, Mickelson was ready to make his rivalry with Tiger Woods a reality.

Then came hole No. 72 at the U.S. Open. And since Mickelson gagged away a second consecutive major, talk of the rivalry went from a debate, to a whisper, to now, a joke.

Whatever happened with Phil, it was drastic. He hasn’t broke 70 in the final round of a tournament since the Zurich Classic of New Orleans, and finished the year with a brutal Ryder Cup experience that saw him go 0-4-1.

It will make for an interesting 2007 season for Phil, who went from being mentioned as the best in the game, to now a complete non-factor, unwilling to even show up for what’s basically the Pro Bowl of golf.

Personally, I wish Mickelson the best and feel he’ll be back to his old form in no time. And if not, well, there’s always German porn and golf blogging.

–WKW