GULLANE, Scotland – Phil Mickelson is a golf historian.
He knows facts, he knows figures and he knows the major titans and their complete accomplishments.
Sure Mickelson is a member of the World Golf Hall of Fame, but he’s not content with his standing within the game.
Victory Sunday at the British Open moved Mickelson into select company with 14 other men who have won at least three different majors. Only five, however, have won all four.
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“I think that if I’m able to win the U.S. Open and complete the career Grand Slam, I think that’s the sign of the complete, great player,” Mickelson said Sunday while holding the claret jug. “I’m a leg away. And it’s been a tough leg for me.”
Mickelson, everyone knows, has a record six second-place finishes in the U.S. Open. The latest came last month at Merion where Mickelson called the near-miss heartbreaking.
The five players who have won all four majors are Jack Nicklaus, Ben Hogan, Tiger Woods, Gary Player and Gene Sarazen.
“And those five players are the greats of the game,” Mickelson said. “You look at them with a different light. If I were able to ever win a U.S. Open, and I’m very hopeful that I will, but it has been elusive for me. And yet this championship has been much harder for me to get.”
