Mickelson Stays in the Picture

SANDWICH, England — Say what you will about Phil Mickelson, and there’s always plenty to talk about, but he’s still here and it doesn’t look as if he’s going away any time soon.

His second-round 72 at Royal St. George’s leaves him at four-over-par 146 and five shots behind Davis Love III as the British Open moves into what is expected to be a sunny and warm weekend.

Mickelson’s own forecast is just as bright. “I’ve been playing very well and if I continue to play this way and start hitting it in the place I want, I should be OK.”

He said he was encouraged by the fact that he played the much tougher back nine in one under after playing it Thursday in five over.

“I’m hitting the ball better than I have all year,” he said. “I’m really striking it well. Although I may not hit the fairway and they seem to bounce off, I’m very pleased with the way I’ve had control off the tee.”

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It was a 4:30 a.m. wakeup call for Ian Woosnam, which is the bad news, because he is a notorious late-night good-timer. That’s way too early, said Woosnam, who shot 75 Friday but made the cut.

“I had a good time, but who wants to get up at 4:30 and play golf?” he said. “I’ve never done that before in my life. That must be why I started bogey, bogey, bogey. I was still asleep, I think.

“Obviously, I was having a nightmare. I slept quite well, actually, and I didn’t even have a drink last night. But I’m going to have one now, though. It’s too windy to go and practice, really.”

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Then there is Charles Challen, 28, from Bracknell, England. A qualifier who has never made a cut on the European Challenge Tour, he shot 87-86 and missed the cut by 23 shots.

Asked what he would do next, he had a quick answer.

“I’m a red wine drinker, so I’m going to get right into it,” he said.

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Colin Montgomerie didn’t get much sympathy from Derek Lawrenson in Friday’s edition of the Daily Mail. Lawrenson hinted that Montgomerie, who pulled out Thursday after injuring his wrist when he slipped on his hotel steps on his way to breakfast, didn’t really seem to be injured because Monty seemed so cheerful about it.

Wrote Lawrenson: “Now after all the tantrums and tears, comes this sad and rather tawdry pantomime.

“It was Montgomerie’s bizarre behavior that had the conspiracy theorists working overtime.”

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From the Lucky Bounce Dept., how about Davis Love III? Yes, his ball bounced off an out-of-bounds stake and went back into play Friday at the 14th hole. Love saved par and kept the lead.

At Pebble Beach this year, Love’s approach shot to the 12th green on Sunday hit a photographer’s foot and he wound up with a birdie, winning by one shot.

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From the Lost Ball Dept., we give you John Daly, who clanked his tee shot off the television tower at the 13th hole and couldn’t find the ball. Daly made a double bogey, his second of the day. He also double bogeyed the seventh when he had a buried lie.

Daly re-injured his finger on his bunker shot at the seventh. He finished with a 75, but his seven-over total of 149 made the cut.

“When I hit the tower, that was a pretty good drive that we didn’t find, so to me, I made even par,” he said. “That’s the way I look at it.”

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On his way to a 74, Scott McCarron was three under on the front and six over on the back.

Said McCarron: “Let’s talk about the front nine.”

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After a one-under 70, Alistair Forsyth was ... what?

“I’m chuffed,” said the 27-year-old Scot.

That means he’s happy.

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He missed the cut, so Ricky Barnes turned pro Friday. He already has his first four professional tournaments set up. Barnes, 22, the U.S. Amateur champion from Stockton and the University of Arizona, signed with Gaylord Sports, which also represents Mickelson, Rich Beem, Mark Calcavecchia, Grace Park, Beth Bauer and others.

Barnes has chosen the International, Aug. 4-10, for his pro debut. He has also accepted sponsor invitations into the Reno-Tahoe Open, the John Deere Classic and the Valero Texas Open and would like to play two more.

Because of his amateur title, Barnes played in the Masters and the U.S. Open. He was 21st at Augusta National and tied for 59th at Olympia Fields. He also played at the Chrysler Classic of Tucson and tied for 18th.

He said turning professional is the natural progression.

“All good things come to an end,” he said. “It’s sad for one thing to end, but hopefully, there are new good things to come.”