There was a Phil Mickelson sighting Tuesday at Cog Hill. He is among the players included in a billboard-size ad behind the first tee.
As far as seeing the real thing, forget about it.
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Even though Mickelson did a corporate outing Tuesday at Medinah Country Club, he elected to leave town and pulled out of the BMW Championship. His withdrawal not only ruins what would have been a Mickelson-Tiger Woods pairing with Steve Stricker on Thursday and Friday, it also delivers another blow to the credibility of the new FedEx Cup.
For the second time in three FedEx Cup events, the No. 1 player in the standings won’t be in the field. Woods was in the top spot when he skipped the opening event — The Barclays. Mickelson’s victory at the Deutsche Bank lifted him into first place Monday.
The PGA Tour has a huge problem if it can’t get a total commitment from Woods and Mickelson. In selling the concept to sponsors, the tour said the big stars were on board.
“Yes, absolutely,” BMW tournament director John Kaczkowski said. “Our understanding was that all the top players were committed to play [the BMW].”
Kaczkowski also added, “It’s important not only to the sponsors, but to the fans, the venue and the host organization.”
Mickelson, though, decided he rather would be at home in San Diego with his family than trying to increase his lead at the BMW. Previously, he had been skeptical he would play four straight weeks of FedEx Cup events.
“I’ve talked for weeks about needing to find a balance between my game, my business affairs, and now is the time for me to take some time off,” Mickelson said in a statement.
Mickelson went out of his way to say he wasn’t taking this action to spite PGA Tour Commissioner Tim Finchem.
“This decision was not an easy one to make and in no way is meant as disrespectful to the tour or ‘sending a message’ to anyone,'” Mickelson said.
Not sending a message to anyone? Didn’t Mickelson do that on national TV Monday when he said he had issues with Finchem? He said he made certain requests of the commissioner that weren’t fulfilled.
There is a message in there somewhere, even though nobody seems to know what it is. If he has complaints, Mickelson should make them public. Golf fans deserve to know what is bothering him.
At least Padraig Harrington was upfront in also deciding to pull out of the BMW on Tuesday. The British Open champion was quoted in an Irish paper as being “knackered,” i.e. Irish slang for exhausted.
Both Kaczkowski and PGA Tour Executive Vice President Ty Votaw said they were “disappointed” Mickelson decided not to play. “Disappointed” is a code word for being ticked off.
The BMW needs all the big stars it can get during a week when the tournament will struggle for headlines against the Bears and Cubs. Instead of Mickelson and Woods playing together for two days, K.J. Choi now rounds out the threesome. Not quite as sexy, is it?
“You’re always disappointed when you lose a marquee player,” Kaczkowski said. “You’d like to have them all.”
At least the BMW has Woods. But Mickelson’s decision has deflated much of the FedEx Cup momentum that was generated by his thrilling battle Monday with Woods in Boston.
Mickelson’s absence also underscores another problem with the FedEx Cup. He leads with 108,613 points. With 9,000 points going to the winner this week, only four players could pass him.
Even if Woods, sitting third, wins Sunday, jumping to 112,733 points, Mickelson still would be in striking range going into the FedEx Cup finale, the Tour Championship in Atlanta. That gives Mickelson even less motivation to be at Cog Hill.
A player shouldn’t be able to skip a FedEx Cup tournament and still be able to win the whole thing. Expect the tour to address that issue for 2008.
“The idea was to get all the top players to play in all four [tournaments],” Luke Donald said. “I think they’re going to have to really look at that and figure out if there’s another way they can try to make the players come and play four. … For me, it was important to play all four.”
Because Mickelson actually committed to play in the BMW, protocol calls for him to write to Finchem to explain why he withdrew. That should be quite an interesting letter.
Wonder if Mickelson will say he was “knackered?”
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