Phil Mickelson: Where Would Another Masters Land Lefty Among All Time Greats?

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Lefty Can Leap Over Some Legends With Another Major Title

In addition to bumping him up the favorites list for this week's Masters Tournament, Phil Mickelson's win in Houston last week was the 39th of his career. That put him in some pretty high profile company.

He is now has 39 wins on the PGA Tour, tying him with Tom Watson and Gene Sarazen, two of the greatest golfers in history.

There's no doubt that Mickelson is a World Golf Hall of Famer, even if he were to walk away from the game today. But with only four major titles (and neither coming in the British or US Open) should he be considered in that truly elite class highlighted by Jack Nicklaus, Bobby Jones, Ben Hogan, Tiger Woods, Watson, Sarazen, and Arnold Palmer and a few others?

As great as Mickelson is, the answer is no.

Yes, playing in the Tiger Woods era has hurt Lefty. But virtually every era has that supreme players: Sarazen and Walter Hagen had Jones, Sam Snead and Byron Nelson had Hogan, and Palmer, Watson, and Lee Trevino had Nicklaus. Each of those men were able to win more majors than Mickelson.

Should Lefty win the Green Jacket this week, he would climb into a tie with Palmer and Woods for second most Masters titles. But I don't think he can climb into that Jones, Hogan, Nicklaus, Woods status without at least one win in the US or British Open. Those are still the most prestigious championships in the golf world, and showcase a truly great, all around golf game.

Furthermore, for all his achievements, his sad history with the US Open--most notably the 2006 collapse at Winged Foot--is still a part of his legacy. Should he one day claim a US Open title and truly exorcise that demon, he will have won three of the four majors (the British Open just doesn't seem to fit his game) he will warrant a place in that upper stratosphere of golf legends.

For more on the Masters, see Masters 2011: Top Five Young Golfers Looking for Their First Major Title Win

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