KIAWAH ISLAND, S.C. -- Perhaps Phil Mickelson's ability on a golf course, the body of work he has established over more than three decades in the public eye, have gotten lost or diminished the past few years. That is why this PGA Championship, so unlikely because it made him the oldest major champion ever at age 50, means so much.
He hadn't won since 2019 at Pebble Beach, hadn't lifted a major championship trophy since 2013 at Muirfield. Since September, he missed six cuts. In the eight in which he was around for the weekend, he never once finished in the top 20.