How did Phil Mickelson handle his disappointing result at the U.S. Open? By running away and hiding for a few days. Expected to participate in a par-3 competition in the week following his major disaster at Winged Foot, Mickelson instead bowed out, saying he wouldn’t be able to have fun, and that he didn’t want to drag down the tournament.
And Mickelson also won’t be in the field this week at TPC River Highlands in Connecticut. Lefty has won this tournament twice in his career, back in both 2001 and 2002 (when it was still called the Greater Hartford Open), but is giving it a pass this time around. Expect Mickelson to resume playing on July 6 in the Western Open, or at the latest the following week in the Scottish Open as a British Open tuneup.
Also not expected at the Buick Championship this week is Tiger Woods, who had his own troubles at Winged Foot when he missed the cut. Although Woods’ official website doesn’t list his next tourney, watch for him to play at least once before the British Open.
Having those two marquee names not around might not be great news for the Buick Championship organizers, but you won’t see the other players in the field complaining. Each of the last two winners of this event, Brad Faxon and Woody Austin, are slated to take to the course this week, with first place earning $792,000 of the $4.4 million purse.
Faxon’s win at TPC River Highlands last year was his first tour victory since the 2001 Sony Open in Hawaii. Austin’s only other tour victory came way back at the Buick Open in 1995. Knowing how to win on the course will give them an edge this week, and the lack of big names in the tournament should help them pick up decent paydays as well.
Also scheduled to play in the Buick Championship this week are Paul Azinger, Mark Calcavecchia, K.J. Choi, Stewart Cink, Ben Curtis, Steve Elkington, Jerry Kelly, Justin Leonard, Kenny Perry, and Scott Verplank. The biggest money winners slated to be in the field are Brett Wetterich ($2.1 million in earnings on tour in 2006), Trevor Immelman ($2.0 million), Carl Pettersson ($1.9 million), and Zach Johnson ($1.9 million).
Of course, the biggest money winner of all right now is Mickelson, who has picked up over $4 million on tour this season. Oddsmakers have Lefty as the -175 favorite to win the PGA tour’s money title in 2006, with Woods, Jim Furyk, and Vijay Singh (who rank seventh, third, and fourth on the current money list) on his heels. The rest of the odds:
Phil Mickelson --- -175
Tiger Woods --- +200
Jim Furyk --- +500
Vijay Singh --- +600
Retief Goosen --- +7500
Chad Campbell --- +8000
Adam Scott --- +8000
Stuart Appleby --- +10000
Luke Donald --- +10000
Ernie Els --- +10000
David Toms --- +10000
If you’d rather look ahead to the next major golf tournament on the schedule, here are the current odds to win the 2006 British Open, which gets started on Thursday, July 20:
Tiger Woods --- +350
Phil Mickelson --- +700
Ernie Els --- +800
Retief Goosen --- +1100
Vijay Singh --- +1100
Luke Donald --- +1500
Colin Montgomerie --- +1700
Padraig Harrington --- +1800
Sergio Garcia --- +2000
Darren Clarke --- +2800
Adam Scott --- +2800
Stuart Appleby --- +3000
Michael Campbell --- +3000
Jim Furyk --- +3000
Jose Maria Olazabal --- +3000
Thomas Bjorn --- +4000
Trevor Immelman --- +4000
Davis Love --- +4000
Lee Westwood --- +4000
Ian Poulter --- +5000
Angel Cabrera --- +5500
Tim Clark --- +5500
David Toms --- +5500
Miguel Angel Jimenez --- +6000
Scott Verplank --- +7000
Fred Couples --- +8000
Kenny Perry --- +8000
Justin Rose --- +8000
The British Open (or, if you prefer, The Open Championship) will be played at the Royal Liverpool Golf Club, and of course Tiger Woods is the defending tournament champion.
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by Mark Rothstein 
