The steam coming off his head in the Sunday night gloaming at Pebble Beach was undoubtedly due to the frigid air that permeated the tournament, although few would be surprised if Phil Mickelson really was seething over the idea that he wouldn't be allowed to finish despite two holes to play in enveloping darkness.
His path to victory these days is never going to be mundane, even in a tournament where he went an entire round without missing a fairway -- a 20-year first.
And sure enough, he managed to visit unknown parts of the Monterey Peninsula with a few wayward tee shots, endured a soggy, bone-numbing array of 5-plus-hour rounds, waited out a Sunday hailstorm that for a time whitened the course, made up a 3-shot deficit on Paul Casey and then -- with victory imminent -- all but pleaded to finish when all that would have been visible was his chattering teeth.