ORLANDO, Fla. — The scene was a rare one: Phil Mickelson packing away his golf clubs in the back of his SUV on a Friday, readying to head to the airport and fly home.
This was Mickelson’s plight yesterday after he followed a sloppy 73 in his opening round with an unsightly second-round 79 to miss the cut at the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill.
“Obviously, I played terrible and I deserve to shoot a score like this,’’ Mickelson said of his 8-over-par finish.
The 79 was the highest score Mickelson has shot in 48 career rounds at this tournament. It was just the 19th time in 1,640 career PGA Tour rounds he shot a round of 79 or higher. The last time Mickelson shot 79 was at the opening round of the Memorial last year, when he withdrew because of “mental fatigue.’’
Mickelson said he is disillusioned by his game at the moment, but he did his best to paint a positive picture.
“I’m glad I played because had I showed up in Houston and had this happen I wouldn’t have had an opportunity to get in the competition,’’ he said.
Next week’s Shell Houston Open is Mickelson’s final tuneup tournament for next month’s Masters.
Mickelson said his poor play at Bay Hill doesn’t concern him in terms of how he will play at the Masters because “this course is totally different’’ from Augusta.
“But,’’ he said, “I need to hit better shots. I need to get my own game where it needs to be to be competitive. It is a little surprising because just a couple months ago I was hitting it really well.
“I’ve got a ways to go. A little time with Butch [Harmon, his swing coach], and I think it will click pretty quickly, but it feels a lot further off than I think it is. I’ll go work with Butch and see if I can get dialed in for Houston.’’
There was much to choose from in identifying the low point in Mickelson’s round, which included three 7s on the card. But the worst moment had to be his five-putt triple bogey on No. 13.
Part of Mickelson’s discomfort stems from a change in the PGA Tour schedule, which this year has the Valero Texas Open in San Antonio the week before Augusta instead of Houston, which is next week.
Mickelson, who prefers to play for the competition the week before a major, likes the Houston event because the golf course is set up similar to Augusta and serves as a good warm-up — something the San Antonio course does not offer. So Mickelson will not play the week before the Masters.
“I like playing in a tournament that’s similar to what we’ll be playing [in a major],’’ Mickelson said. “This year, having a windy, tight course [San Antonio] really isn’t conducive to getting ready for Augusta. That makes it difficult for me personally, so I’ll end up going to Augusta a few days early.
“I’ve got to make some adjustments, because I find when I take a week off, I come out and play like I did [this week] — just mentally not sharp.’’