MASTERS TOURNAMENT

April 13, 2024

Phil Mickelson

Quick Quotes

Q. How did you do today? Is it more manageable today?

PHIL MICKELSON: I think it's a good, hard test. You've got swirling winds, fast greens, difficult pins. Then you have birdie holes and the greens are still somewhat receptive.

I think it's a great test. You can score well on it. It's a really good Masters.

Q. Weather conditions out there today given -- the wind was down from yesterday, but still those pin positions today were so much harder.

PHIL MICKELSON: It's not easy. I mean, it's not an easy golf course. The greens are a little faster. Again, I think it's very scorable if you play it well.

Q. Did you enjoy it like the way it was yesterday?

PHIL MICKELSON: I always enjoy the challenges. We have a lot of different challenges. The year Dustin won it was soft, it had rained, and you've got to shoot 20-under par. The challenge of attacking every pin and playing it like it's your local home course was a fun challenge. Then this is a test at the highest level. And everything in between is great.

Q. Do you have flashes when you're out there of things that have happened in other years, last year, five years ago, 20 years ago?

PHIL MICKELSON: Every time. I made this putt last year. I know exactly what it does. Going this way and that way. Actually having that -- there's a lot of great memories over the years of shots hit, putts made, chips made, knowing what it does, that is always relevant even to this day.

Q. On that perspective, '04 co-leader, going for your first one, if someone, Max finds himself in that situation today and asked you for a little advice, what would you say to him?

PHIL MICKELSON: I don't know. I'm going to let everybody figure it out for themselves. That's part of the challenge.

Q. What about going for number two, like Scottie?

PHIL MICKELSON: Again, let them figure it out for themselves. It's always a fun challenge. Like literally all that stuff is a fun challenge, trying to get your first, trying to get another one. Knowing how to score in certain conditions. All this is what makes play so great.

We've got to come back every year, and history is made every year, and nuances are learned every year. Shots for the first time you've ever seen occur.

I saw Sepp Straka run it through the bunker on 2 yesterday. Never saw a ball run through the bunker, and it rolled up 20 feet from the hole. You see things happen that never happen before, just every year. So it's always fun.

Q. Do you remember how you felt in '04, that night?

PHIL MICKELSON: Yeah, yeah, it's the best. Winning this tournament is the best feeling. Most everybody, especially myself, this is the one I grew up dreaming of winning. That moment, that night after you won, it's the best.

Q. You mentioned before you wanted to let everybody else work it out themselves. Is that part of the secret to being a Masters champion? You can watch and learn and be coached and play as much as you possibly can, but at the end of the day, every man has to work it out for themselves?

PHIL MICKELSON: Yeah, I think that's part of it. The other thing too is the course plays differently for each player. Everybody feels comfortable hitting certain shots. Some guys like drawing it. Some guys like fading it. Some guys want to attack these pins, and some guys have to play conservative to these pins. As a left-handed player with different shot dispersion, different shots and holes feel more comfortable to me than for other players.

Learning what is comfortable for you, learning what holes you feel comfortable attacking and what holes you don't and then making a real effort to play more conservative on those shots, like you've got to figure that out. That's the fun part of the battle.

Q. Bryson's talked about being more patient, more mature. What have you seen out of him this year?

PHIL MICKELSON: Well, he's one of the best players in the world. He might do it differently than other players, but that's part of his beauty, I guess. He's just -- he's an incredible talent. He's clearly one of the best, if not the best player in the world.