Phil Mickelson will be the next member of the World Golf Hall of Fame.
He's won 39 career tournaments including three Masters and one PGA Championship. Mickelson is playing in the Singapore Open this week and the President's Cup in Australia next week.
Q. Besides all the achievements and this landmark, as well, becoming a Hall of Famer, if you could give us a bit of perspective, what it means for a professional golfer to be part of this elite company, and also, does it make you feel old?
PHIL MICKELSON: Well, the great thing about golf is that we're able to play for a lifetime. We're able to compete for a lifetime. What the PGA Tour has done, and much thanks to Commissioner Finchem by creating such a strong Champions Tour, it allows players to compete well into their 60s. So golf has become kind of a lifelong career, where other sports it's not. Other sports it's more of a finite timeline. So I guess it might be a little unique or a little bit different. I don't want to say that I feel old because I don't feel it. I feel like I've got a lot of great golf ahead of me, and I feel terrific and have been playing well. The scores didn't reflect it today, but it's close, and I just feel like I can take that knowledge from the last 20 years and apply it to my game and hopefully continue to add to the accomplishments that have already gotten me into the Hall.
Q. I'm curious, you're in the Hall of Fame now, but what's left? What important goals do you still want to accomplish before you retire?
PHIL MICKELSON: Well, I still want to win a number of golf tournaments. I'd like to get to that magical number of 50 that only a few guys have gotten to as far as total tournaments, but also I think that finally getting a U.S. Open would mean a lot to me as well as a British Open, which would complete the career slam. I came very close last year at Royal St. George's to getting that British. I've had five seconds in the U.S. Open; I've been very close. And I'm going to try to take that knowledge I've gained over the years that have led to those good performances and see if I can get over the hump and win those. I think that would be two special monumental feats for me to accomplish.
