Phil Mickelson looks forward to the Masters Tournament - Golf News
The four-time major winner, Phil Mickelson, is looking confident ahead of the start of the first major event of the year, the Masters Tournament.
Mickelson did not have a good start to his Arnold Palmer Invitational campaign, as he carded a one-over par 73 in the opening round on Thursday, March 22, 2012.
The second day saw him again struggling with his form, as he scored four birdies against three bogeys to finish one-under par 71.
The worst time of his round came when he scored two consecutive bogeys to end his round. Otherwise, he could have managed to post a three-under score or better.
Therefore, he is now nine strokes off the lead set by Tiger Woods and Charlie Wi at 10-under par halfway score.
Yet, Mickelson believes that he can make a good run in the Masters and he is ready to take his opponents down at the Augusta National.
"I just have this ease going to Augusta because you don't have to be perfect there," the three-time Masters champion said. "You can make mistakes, you can make some loose swings and so I feel very relaxed".
He added, "But if I can get some good ball-striking and some good momentum from these couple of tournaments, like I did in 2006, I think it would be a much easier route and a better route to try to capture a fourth green jacket".
According to Mickelson, he is playing the tournament prior to the Masters in order to stay strong on the course.
This way, he will be able to fix the flaws in his game and overcome them before the tournament.
His experience and knowledge of the Augusta National Golf Club makes him a strong contender in the tournament.
However, players like Rory McIlroy, Luke Donald and especially, Tiger Woods will still be a threat to him because of their good forms in the recent tournaments.
Mickelson said that his first-round performance at the Arnold Palmer Invitational was, no doubt, unsatisfactory.
However, he aims to make a comeback in the coming 36 holes and get into contention for the top positions in the tournament.
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