Houston Open Power Rankings: Top ten players at Golf Club of Houston

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HUMBLE, TX – APRIL 03: Phil Mickelson holds the trophy after winning the Shell Houston Open at Redstone Golf Club on April 3, 2011 in Humble, Texas. (Photo by Michael Cohen/Getty Images) /

Phil is a bit of a wild card choice this week. He’s been on the record stating that his focus tends to drift ahead while in Houston.

"“It’s tough to use this week as a barometer for next,” Mickelson said in 2016. “To play this course effectively, you got to hit a lot of 3-woods, play more defensive. At Augusta, though, you have to step on the driver, and so I hit a lot more drivers here this week than I would if I were really focused on trying to win this week.”"

No matter his mindset, one thing is clear: Lefty’s confident. His last stroke play start was his win at the WGC-Mexico. He followed that with a 2-1 mark at the WGC-Match Play, just narrowly missing the knockout round.

Phil’s still Phil off the tee (135th strokes gained) but has been elite almost everywhere else. He’s third in strokes gained approaching the green, second in putting and 48th around the green.

Mickelson won here in 2011 and is 10-for-11 in cuts made since the tournament came to the Golf Club of Houston in 2003.

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