All your favorite teams and sources in one place

Build your feed

Your Teams.
All Sources.

Build your feed

© 2024 BVM Sports. Best Version Media, LLC.

No results found.
Phil Mickelson Makes History as Oldest Major Championship Winner
Phil Mickelson gives his iconic thumbs up to fans at the PGA Championship in Kiawah Island, South Carolina. (Courtesy: @PhilMickelson/Twitter)

Phil Mickelson Makes History as Oldest Major Championship Winner

KIAWAH ISLAND, S. Car. (BVM) – Phil Mickelson’s legacy has been firmly planted in the game of golf for over a decade, but at this year’s PGA Championship “Lefty” decided that he was not ready to ride off into the sunset just yet.

At 50 years old, Mickelson made professional golf history by becoming the oldest player ever to win a major championship. Julius Boros won the PGA Championship at 48 in 1968, and the memorable and unlikely win by Jack Nicklaus at the 1986 Masters Tournament occurred when “The Bear” was only 46 years old. Mickelson will be remembered in the history books for a number of his accomplishments, but this win against an impressive young field at the PGA Championship will be a record that will be undoubtedly hard to break.

The Ocean Course at Kiawah Island hosted the PGA Championship this year, providing scenic backdrops to a challenging and exciting tournament. The golf course was set up at 7,660 yards, making it one of the longest major championships in recent history. With the course setting up at this length and favoring long ball hitters, the younger, upcoming stars in golf were picked to win. However, as the tournament started on Thursday and moved into the weekend, the long hitters had trouble fighting both the wind and the demand of the course and one improbable name continued to stay at the top of the leaderboard: Phil Mickelson.

After Saturday’s third round (usually considered moving day), Mickelson held a one stroke lead over competitor and fourtime major champion Brooks Koepka. The names of Louis Oosthuizen, Bryson DeChambeau, Jordan Speith and Rickie Fowler were all a ways back from the leader, but still in contention. Mickelson’s track record for holding leads in tournaments has occasionally haunted him, and though his round on Sunday was played in typical rollercoaster fashion, Mickelson looked like he was still in control.

The battle that ensued between Koepka and Mickelson was chaotic and captivating. Throughout the final round, there were multiple two shot swings where Mickelson would bogey and Koepka would birdie, or vice versa. Koepka, a younger star in the game of golf, often has a good amount of support from the fans in attendance. However, much like when the fans got behind Tiger Woods at the 2019 Masters, the entire crowd at the Ocean Course, as well as those watching from home, wanted to see Mickelson hoist up the Wanamaker Trophy.

Mickelson’s last number of holes were not short of drama. The short game of Mickelson has always been a staple of his game, and though his wedge and putter held him steady, it was his drives on two of the last three holes that secured the PGA Championship. In the last round on Hole 16, Mickelson hit the longest drive of the tournament, as well as his career, at a staggering 366 yards.

His walk up the 18th hole was not traditional. Fans ran up the fairway behind him, echoing his iconic nickname “Lefty.” The ending was fitting as the crowd that had his back for the entire tournament was literally at his back as he walked up the final fairway. His two putt par on the 72nd hole secured his sixth major championship.

Mickelson was already a first ballot hall of famer, but this win was not only against one of the strongest fields in golf, but also against Father Time. The sports landscape continues to see aging superstars such as Serena Williams and Tom Brady meticulously maintain their bodies and continue their success into late stages of their career, and Mickelson can now be included in that highly esteemed list.

Mickelson’s unexpected victory at the 2021 PGA Championship will forever be remembered in golf history. The roars of “Lefty” will continue to follow him throughout the twilight of his career, a twilight in which Mickelson proved has more than a little magic left.