AUGUSTA, Ga. — Karma always has counted at the Masters.
As sure as the azaleas burst into bloom every year at this time at Augusta National, the best story always seems to rise to the surface at the Masters.
And there was no better story this week than Phil Mickelson, 2010 Masters champion.
Given the trying circumstances that have dominated his life the last year and given his undying popularity among the masses, was there any other player who should have had the Green Jacket slipped over his shoulders yesterday?
Mickelson was the player who most needed to win this Masters and, based on the rabid support of him that reverberated around Augusta National yesterday as he made his scintillating back-nine run to victory, karma counted.
Mickelson won his third Masters by carding a taut 5-under-par 67 to finish 16 under, three shots clear of runner-up Lee Westwood, four better than Anthony Kim and five better than Tiger Woods.
It was Mickelson’s third Green Jacket and the fourth major of his career, but this was the most moving and significant moment of his golfing life because of the pain and heartache that have come while his wife, Amy, has been battling breast cancer.
In an emotional scene that rivals any the Masters has witnessed in its storied history, Amy, who was diagnosed 11 months ago, was waiting at the 18th green with their three children, Amanda, Sophia and Evan, along with his and her parents to greet him.
As Mickelson headed toward the scoring hut, he and Amy locked into a tearful embrace that looked as if it might last until next year’s Masters.
“I don’t normally shed tears over wins, [but] when Amy and I hugged off 18, that was a very emotional moment for us and something that we’ll look back on and cherish for the rest of our lives,” Mickelson said.
Yesterday was the first time Amy and the kids had accompanied Mickelson to a tournament (a normal occurrence when she was healthy) and her appearance at 18 was the first time she’s been seen in public since being diagnosed.
The plan entering the day was for Amy to come to the course if Phil was within three shots at the turn. He had a one-shot lead as he stepped to the 10th tee and Amy was brought to the Butler Cabin, where she watched with the family until it was time to come to the 18th.
The scene on 18 was the best of the day, but there were so many moments in Mickelson’s final round that were defining.
He saved his round with two world-class par saves from the trees and pine needles on Nos. 9 and 10.
He birdied the 12th hole, which was his nemesis last year as he made a run that was foiled when his tee shot went into Rae’s Creek, draining the same 20-footer that he made in 2004 when he won his first Masters.
The moment of all moments came on the par-5 13th, where he again drove it right and his ball was resting on pine needles in between two trees 207 yards to the hole.
Instead of punching out safely, Mickelson challenged Rae’s Creek and lashed a 6-iron that barely reached land safely. He would birdie 13 and, from there, no one was going to stop him from slipping that Green Jacket on for a third time.
“It’s one of the few shots, really, that only Phil could pull off,” said Westwood, who stood only several feet away from Mickelson when he hit the shot. “I think most people would have chipped that one out. But that’s what great players do — pull off shots at the right time.”
Asked later what the difference is between a “great shot” and a “smart shot,” Mickelson said, “A great shot is when you pull it off. A smart shot is when you don’t have the guts to try it.”
The shot Mickelson hit on 13 epitomized the style that has made him so popular: He’s unafraid.
It has been almost a year of fearing for the health of his wife and the psyche of his children as Amy endured cancer treatments. Yesterday — even if only for a few precious hours — was a day for the entire family to rejoice and fear nothing. Again, karma counted at Augusta National.
mark.cannizzaro@nypost.com