Liguori: Phil Mickelson In The Hunt For A Fourth Green Jacket
By Ann Liguori
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Peter Hanson, in only his second Masters, shot the low round of the tournament, a 7 under 65, to take a one shot lead over Phil Mickelson into Sunday's Final Round.
Who would have picked Hanson to be leading The Masters heading into Sunday's final round? The Swede can play and has had five international victories and was a member of the 2010 European Ryder Cup team.
Hanson originally wanted to be a professional tennis player, following the likes of Bjorn Borg, Stefan Edberg and Mats Wilander, when he was young. "I wanted to be a tennis player and I very quickly found out I wasn't good enough," he said. He played golf since he was nine years old and when he was 14, 15, he said he decided to skip tennis and pursue golf full-time.
Fast forward 21 years and Hanson finds himself leading The Masters heading into Sunday.
Hanson played with Phil Mickelson earlier in the week and said he tried to use that as a bit of motivation. "I mean, the crowds are so much behind Phil and they love him, and I understand why; the way he plays…I'm just going to try to enjoy it."
Mickelson electrified the galleries on the back nine on Saturday. After nine straight pars on the front, Phil birdied holes 10, 12, eagled 13 with a long putt, birdied 15 with a brilliant flop shot that landed within four feet of the cup.
After Lefty's sloppy first round 'plus 2, 74,' where he lost his ball on the tenth hole and ended up with a triple bogey there, and then rallied from 4-over through 14 holes with a few late birdies, Phil said if he got hot on Friday, he would still be in this. With rounds of 68 on Friday and 66 in round three, Phil got his wish and will be in the hunt for his fourth Green Jacket.
Be sure to catch Ann's reports from the Masters on WFAN. For more information on Ann, visit her web site at www.annliguori.com.
