SAN DIEGO _ Phil Mickelson walked out of the scorer's room Friday afternoon at the Farmers Insurance Open, politely informed the autograph hounds gathered outside that he needed to hit on the range before breaking out his Sharpie and disappeared with coach Andrew Getson for over an hour.
There was much work to be done.
Just not for this weekend.
The 49-year-old Mickelson limped through a 3-over back nine at Torrey Pines North to finish with a 1-over 73 and a two-round total of 145, two shots higher than the cut line of 1-under 143. It's the second straight weekend the Hall of Famer missed the cut.
The Saudi International is the next event on his schedule, beginning Thursday. The way Lefty is playing to start the year, he's considering adding Los Angeles to his February stops because he doesn't expect to qualify for the WGC-Mexico Championship.
"(Andrew) is not going with me overseas, so I wanted to get it ironed out," Mickelson said after his post-round session on the range. "I had been playing really well coming into the start of the season. To miss two cuts looks like I'm playing like I did last year. But I'm just not. I know I'm playing better.
"I'm not off to a great start, but I'll get it turned around."
Murrieta's Rickie Fowler (even), San Diego State's Xander Schauffele (even) and defending champion Justin Rose (1-over) were among the notables to miss the weekend cut.
This is the first time Mickelson has missed two straight cuts to start a year. The trend is at least a little alarming.
Mickelson made just 12 cuts last year, his fewest since making 7 of 11 in 1992, his first year on the PGA Tour. He also managed just four top-25 finishes in 2019, his fewest since that rookie season, and has not played particularly well at his hometown tournament since a second-place showing in 2011.
Lefty skipped the event _ the scene of three of his 44 career wins _ altogether for the first time in his career last year, finished T-45 in 2018 and missed the cut or withdrew four times in a five-year span. He has not won at Torrey Pines since the South Course was renovated after his 2001 victory.
This week, three bogeys on his back nine on the South Course on Day 1 signaled enough concern for Mickelson to meet up with Getson at 7 a.m. on another course before his Friday start.
He was 2-under after his first seven holes Friday, but he never made another birdie.
"I missed a couple short putts on the back nine, my second nine, and that surprised me and threw me for a loop," Mickelson said. "Because I had been putting well and it took away a lot of momentum. I missed a four-footer on the third hole, the par 3, and a four- or five-footer for birdie on five. Those two putts kind of threw me off."
That's not all.
Mickelson missed 12 of 14 fairways on the easier North Course and was just 7 for 28 off the tee. His first post-round shot on the range nearly sliced over the fencing.
"I drove it the way I used to _ or have been _ and not the way I've been recently," Mickelson said. "This is a hard course to play if you're not hitting the fairway. I'm not overly discouraged. Just a little surprised that I missed the cut.
"I've been playing so well coming in. I thought I was going to have a good week."
Instead, it's off to Saudi Arabia. The European Tour event, a guaranteed appearance payday, is replacing the Phoenix Open on Mickelson's schedule, perhaps permanently as Mickelson becomes eligible for the senior tour when he turns 50 in June.
Whether Friday was his last round at his hometown Farmers Insurance Open, the Rancho Santa Fe resident wasn't ready to say.
"I don't know," Mickelson admitted. "I've certainly enjoyed playing here over the years, but I don't know. I'm not looking ahead a year yet, but we'll see."
