Mickelson Leads, but He Can’t Rest

Even after an extra-long workday at La Costa Resort and Spa on Saturday, Phil Mickelson didn’t want to stop.

He had to finish the last nine holes of his second round, which was cut off because of rain Friday. He then shot a 68 in the third round. And after that he was out on the practice range until the last rays of daylight had disappeared, working out the remaining kinks in his game.

There’s no time for errors now. The Mercedes Championships are his to lose.

Mickelson dipped to as low as 14 under par before he bogeyed the last hole to finish the third round with the lead, at 13-under 203.

“[Today] I hope to play a little steadier and try to minimize the mistakes,” Mickelson said.

Just behind him is the hottest player on the tour, David Duval, who birdied four of the last nine holes to end the day at 12 under.

John Cook and Nick Price, Nos. 1 and 2 after the first round, are tied for third at 11 under.

“We’re going to have to fire on all cylinders tomorrow with all of those young bucks around,” said Price, who shot a 69 in the third round.

Tiger Woods brought himself back into the mix Friday, but missed on a couple of good chances early in the third Saturday and shot a 69 for the round, leaving him five strokes off the lead at eight under.

So Mickelson recaptured a little of the limelight he used to own when he was the hot kid, winning four tournaments in 1996.

One illustration of Mickelson’s diminished status came Friday, when he stood in a hallway talking to a couple of reporters while a stream of people walked by to fill the auditorium for Woods’ news conference.

Mickelson spent most of 1997 watching the rest of his generation speed by, as Woods and Justin Leonard and Ernie Els won majors and stole the headlines.

“It was difficult for me because I want to win a major and I didn’t,” Mickelson said earlier in the tournament. “Guys who win those tournaments deserve the attention. If I want to be in their situation, I have to win a major.”

And if he wants to reestablish himself as a major contender, he needs to win some early tournaments.

“[1998] is a very important year for me,” Mickelson said. “Winning the first tournament would be a great way to start the year. “[1997] was not the year I had envisioned or hoped for. I’m hoping to make up for it.”

Mickelson’s approach to La Costa is to take advantage of four or five holes and just par the rest of the way, but Saturday he took an adventuresome ride that found him wandering across fairways, pitching from out of the gallery and moving from bunker to bunker.

His drive on the par-five second hole wound up in the rough just off the adjacent fifth fairway. He hit a five-iron that struck a power line hanging over the course and was allowed to replay his shot. He tried it again, then laid up with a lob wedge and made the six-foot birdie putt.

He saved par on the fifth hole thanks to a nice wedge shot from behind the ropes.

Mickelson tried to reach the green in two shots on the 538-yard ninth hole, but his second shot fell well short and almost rolled into a creek. Standing 79 yards from the cup, Mickelson lofted the ball to within four feet for a birdie putt.

His drive on the par-five 12th hole landed in a fairway bunker on the left side, 262 yards from the pin. But he had a nice, high lie and tried a three-wood that he hit well--a little too well. It bounced off the green and into the rear bunker. He pitched out of that to within four feet for a birdie.

He drained a 50-foot putt on the 16th green for his seventh birdie of the day, more than enough to offset his three bogeys.

Now will he have enough to hold off Duval, who has broken par 17 rounds in a row?

For a guy on such a run, with three consecutive tournament victories, Duval sure doesn’t seem excited.

“Make of it what you will,” Duval said. “I haven’t made as big a deal as a lot of people have.”

Duval seemed happier that he regained the form that allowed him to win three in a row in the first place.

“The way I finished up the last 11 holes was how I had been playing last year,” Duval said.

“My timing is the thing that had been missing, and it fell back into place.”

That has him in a place that has become all too familiar lately, up near the top of the leaderboard.

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The Leaders

Scores through 54 holes of the $1.7-million Mercedes Championships on the par-72 La Costa Resort and Spa course:

Phil Mickelson: :68-67-68--203 -13

David Duval: 68-70-66--204 -12

Nick Price: 66-70-69--205 -11

John Cook: 65-70-70--205 -11

Gabriel Hjertstedt: 69-68-69--206 -10

Frank Nobilo: 67-69-70--206 -10

Mark O’Meara: 71-70-67--208 -8

Tiger Woods: 72-67-69--208 -8

COMPLETE SCORES: C14