Under the watchful eye of short-game guru Dave Pelz, Phil Mickelson got another crack Monday at Pinehurst No. 2.
Hoping to become just the sixth player to win the career grand slam at next week’s U.S. Open, Lefty raved about the restoration by the architectural team of Ben Crenshaw and Bill Coore, saying in this 90-second clip – posted Monday on Pinehurst.com – that they have “restored the shot-making value that was originally intended.”
Mickelson added that the main challenge at this U.S. Open will still be to hit fairways, because the greens are so penalizing.
“You’ve got to be in the fairway to have a realistic chance of controlling your shot and staying on the green,” he said.
Mickelson is scheduled to play another practice round at Pinehurst on Tuesday before heading to Memphis for this week’s St. Jude Classic.