WGC-Mexico: Top 10 power rankings at Club de Chapultepec

MEXICO CITY, MEXICO – MARCH 04: Phil Mickelson poses with the Gene Sarazen Cup after winning the World Golf Championships-Mexico Championship on a playoff hole at Club De Golf Chapultepec on March 4, 2018 in Mexico City, Mexico. (Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images)

Phil snapped his near five-year drought with his win at last year’s WGC-Mexico. He finished T7 (67-68-68-71) in 2017 and posted 69-68-65-68 for his win in 2018 when he fended off a hard-charging Justin Thomas in a two-man playoff.

You don’t think Phil and a tree-lined course would be compatible, but Chapultepec is just negotiable enough to where he seems to enjoy scheming his way around. Even at 72nd in the field in driving accuracy in 2017 and 59th in 2018, he’s found a way to get it done.

“The key for me is missing it in the right spots,” Mickelson said during the 2018 WGC-Mexico. “There’s like five or six fairways where half the fairway blocks you out so you’re better off in the rough on the opposite side. The first round I made a mistake on the 14th hole and I missed in the left rough, the one place you can’t miss, and I made double. So if you find me in that fairway again, I’ve miss-hit it. I’m trying to play to the right. There’s a lot of holes like that where if you put it in the right spot, you have a pretty good angle for shots in and you can go low.”

Always thinking critically, that Mickelson guy.

He’s not only bolstered by his win this time last year, but by his recent triumph at Pebble Beach. It was his first win in the U.S. since Feb. 2013, surprisingly. Mickelson also nearly won at the Desert Classic (T2) and was solid, though never a threat, last week at Riviera (T37, 72-69-71-70).

In 14 measured rounds on Tour this season, Mickelson is 13th in strokes gained approach and is above average in all main strokes gained categories. He’s also 15th in approach from the fairway and the rough, so as long as he’s keeping it in the ballpark he’s got a shot to shoot in red figures.

One hesitation with taking Phil this week would be the fatigue factor. The 48-year-old is endeavoring to play his fourth week in a row and fifth in six weeks. In fairness, the last time he was on his fourth week in a row was in 2018 when he finished T2 at Pebble and then T6 the next week at Riv.