The new order: Phil Mickelson proves the game has evolved
Let’s be honest, it’s a rare thing in any sport, a so-called middle aged competitor conquering one and all. It’s the ultimate sporting narrative. The romance of being written off and, against the odds, winning.
For me, it’s even more compelling than a young maverick bursting onto the scene to win their first big one, because this particular triumph is a genuine world first. As the dust has settled on the PGA Championship some much needed thinking and diagnosis is needed. Phil Mickelson winning the PGA Championship may have just made golf the most electric, accessible and interesting sport on the planet. Is there any other professional game where you have individuals from across decades competing against each other? And it may have just ushered in a new era for the game.
With one weekend of sheer class, perseverance and consistency, all of a sudden with a rhythm of days gone by, at 50, just days shy of his 51st birthday, (admittedly a needless embellishment), Phil Mickelson became the oldest Major winner. With every writer, journalist and broadcaster focusing on that number. His age has proved fascinating for almost every writer, journalist and broadcaster covering the tournament. But why do we focus on age being a barrier? In the modern era, surely it's inevitable that experience, coupled with better diet and nutrition, should see traditional barriers broken. Bernard Langer predicted the feat a few weeks before and nobody believed him. A player in their 50s will win a major, he said. At the time, it passed almost unnoticed.
Mickelson admits openly he is in better shape now than in his prime, (he says he looks at pictures of himself in his peak in disbelief) with his close knit coaching team and fitness advisers revealing he recognised he needed to watch what he put in his body in order to compete at any level in the future; with a focus on maintaining mobility and a larger base of strength.
“A player in their 50s will win a major, he said. At the time, it passed almost unnoticed.”
In a year where there was a fresh and renewed obsession on length and extra yardage - let’s call it the Bryson factor, this win could be more significant than we realise...even Rory Mcllory admitted he was trying to be more Bryson, and it had affected his game. A win for the purist, a win for the good of the game, and hopefully something Bryson and co, take note of - hitting ‘bombs’ with attitude does not necessarily lead to consistent success. There isn’t always a shortcut or a Tiger-line.
Remember, it has been a revealing recent month in golf where age has challenged the norm. Richard Bland, became the oldest first-time winner on the European Tour at the age of 48 years and 101 days, winning the British Masters, and from recent form it doesn’t look like he is stopping there. Plus, let's not forget a certain Ryder Cup captain Padraig Harrington keeping up pace throughout the week at the PGA Championship, and at the age of 49. At this rate, he might be deciding who he plays with in the pairings come September. And that really would be a story.
When there has been in the last year an overwhelming trend on the exuberance and disruption of youth in the game we love, perhaps we can look to remind ourselves that competition on every tour is greater than ever, and your age is certainly no barrier to success. A mere number, just not the most important. It couldn’t make for a more exciting era, and it will certainly give hope, belief and direction to a recovering Tiger fighting his way back in the wings. In short: it’s time to not rule anyone out.
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