He’s Late, but Not Sorry

Phil is in the (club) house.

Finally.

It isn’t often the sportswriters beat the defending Masters champion to Augusta National, but they did this week.

Phil Mickelson, last year’s champion, did not get to town until late Monday night.

He had a good excuse, though. His arrival was delayed by his victory in the BellSouth Classic, a PGA Tour event outside Atlanta that was extended to Monday by weather delays, then extended four holes by a playoff, which Mickelson won by outlasting Rich Beem.

Mickelson likes to play the week before the Masters but admits he cut it close this year.

“Obviously that wasn’t what I was thinking, but I’ll take it,” he said Tuesday.

Mickelson said sneaking into town might even work to his advantage.

“To feel the intensity and the anxiety and the butterflies of a sudden-death playoff, that’s what I feel every shot, every round here at Augusta,” Mickelson said. “And so to have only two days of a break of that is terrific because when I go 10 days, 11 days without having that feeling, it’s much more of a culture shock for me.”

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Sights and sounds:

* Three-time champion Gary Player, entered in his 48th Masters, played a practice round by himself, stopping often to chat with fans.

“You make a lot of friends,” Player said afterward of his annual visits to Augusta.

No one expects the 69-year-old Player, who last won the Masters in 1978 and has made only one cut since 1994, to play on the weekend.

But no one can question his competitive spirit. He missed about a dozen practice putts from 18 feet on the 18th green, yet it was clear he was going to go down swinging.

“I’m not leaving until I hole one,” he said.

Player finally rolled home the almost impossible downhill putt with a tricky right-turn break.

“I hope you don’t have that putt on Sunday,” a bystander yelled.

“I hope I do have that putt on Sunday,” Player retorted.

* At the 14th fairway crossing, fans intersected 1992 champion Fred Couples as he followed his ball to the green. Couples stopped to shake hands and pose for pictures and even accepted a sandwich, wrapped in traditional green, from one admirer.

Moments later, patrons faced a similar situation at the 15th fairway crossing involving 2000 champion Vijay Singh, the world’s No. 1 player.

Singh cut through the crowd with little or no fanfare.

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World ranking update: Singh is No. 1 and will stay there with a victory. Tiger Woods, No. 2 now, will jump to No. 1 if he wins.

No. 3 Ernie Els can get to No. 1 if he wins, Singh finishes lower than tied for third, and Woods lower than tied for second.

MASTERS TEE TIMES...D9