May 24, 2021
The 103rd PGA Championship had everything we wanted in a major: a venerable venue boasting movie-set scenery and the longest yardage in history, a cast of marquee characters with intriguing “will he or won’t he” storylines, and a legit entry into the golf history books as Phil Mickelson – at 50 years, 11 months and seven days – became the oldest major winner in PGA Tour history and first player to win a major after age 50.
The “age thing” was a theme all week at Kiawah Island. It had been more than two years since Mickelson last won on Tour, at the Pebble Beach Pro-Am in February 2019. It had been eight years since he last won a major – the 2013 Open Championship – and 16 years since he last won the PGA Championship, in 2005 at Baltusrol. The “oldest ever” title previously belonged to Julius Boros, who was 48 years, four months and 18 days old during the 1968 PGA Championship.
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Mickelson started the week as a +20000 longshot, but by Sunday evening he was the one with his hands on the Wanamaker Trophy.
“So, it’s very possible that this is the last tournament I ever win,” said Mickelson, who shot 70-69-70-73=282, 6 under to win by two shots over two-time PGA champ Brooks Koepka and major winner Louis Oosthuizen. “Like, if I’m being realistic. But it’s also very possible that I may have had a little bit of a breakthrough in some of my focus and maybe I go on a little bit of a run, I don’t know.
“But the point is that there’s no reason why I, or anybody else, can’t do it at a later age. It just takes a little bit more work.”
Part of that work included some focused “brain training,” which incorporated meditation, breath work, a measured pace, visualization and unwavering belief.
“I believed for a long time that I could play at this level again,” said Mickelson, who turn 51 on June 16. “I didn’t see why I couldn’t, but I wasn’t executing the way I believed I could ….”
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