AUGUSTA, Ga. — This time there was no leapin' Lefty on Augusta National's 18th green.
As thrilled as he was to win his second Masters Sunday, Phil Mickelson didn't jump for joy this time.
Unlike his 2004 Masters victory when he needed to sink an 18-foot birdie putt on the final hole to win and then went airborne, Mickelson came to the final hole relaxed, with a three-shot advantage after playing bogeyless golf in the final round.
Even a bogey on the 18th hole made no difference as Mickelson finished with a two-stroke victory over South African Tim Clark and a first prize of $1.26 million.
"It was a lot better — I loved it," Mickelson said. "The stress-free walk up 18 was incredible. It was a great feeling walking up there, knowing that I had the tournament in hand."
Mickelson had taken all the drama out of what was shaping up to possibly be one of the most exciting Masters final rounds ever with 15 players, including the top five golfers in the world, all within four shots of the lead.
While Tiger Woods, Vijay Singh, Retief Goosen and Ernie Els each struggled with bogeys, Mickelson kept plugging along with pars before making four birdies at holes 7, 8, 13 and 15 to break out to a four-shot lead, which allowed him to coast home.
Woods, a four-time Masters champion who won last year, had putting problems all day and was well off the lead until making a late rally with birdies on three of the last four holes to finish in a tie for third at 284.
"I feel like breaking the putter in eight pieces," a frustrated Woods said. "I hit it great today. I felt so much in control of my ball from tee to green. But I absolutely putted bad. I didn't know what was going on."
Goosen tied with Woods for third, along with former champion Fred Couples, second-round leader Chad Campbell and two-time champion Jose Maria Olazabal. Like Woods, Goosen was well off the pace before making birdies at 13, 15 and 16.
Singh, the 2000 champion was still within two shots of Mickelson with six holes left, but he couldn't make a birdie on the back nine and a bogey at No. 16 dropped him back to 3 under par and he finished in a tie for eighth at 285.
Els, who is still looking for his first green jacket, double-bogeyed the par-5 No. 2 hole, never contended and had to birdie the final hole to finish at 292.
Then there was poor Rocco Mediate. He had been in contention since shooting a 68 in the opening round and he was still in the thick of things after 10 holes, standing at 4 under par, one off the lead. He bogeyed the 11th hole to drop a shot but absolute disaster struck at the par-3 12th hole.
Mediate hit his tee shot into the Rae's Creek and from the drop area, hit another into the water. Now he was hitting 5 and his next shot went into the back bunker. From there, his next shot went back in the water. Hitting 8, he finally hit the green and two-putted for a 10, becoming the third person to make 10 or higher on the hole since 1946.
Later, Mediate didn't directly address the 10th-hole disaster, but did talk about his ailing back, which had held up most of the tournament.
"My back went psycho, after my swing on No. 9," he said. "I just couldn't make the swings."
The 30-year-old Clark had led much of the third round, which was completed in the morning, before falling back, two off the lead. He was paired with Woods and handled the pressure well, beating Woods by a shot, thanks to a birdie blast from the bunker at 18 from 40 feet.
Olazabal posted the best score of the tournament, a 6-under-par 66. He actually got it to 7-under on the day after making a 5-foot eagle putt at No. 15, but he three-putted the 16th hole to fall back to 6-under on the day and 4-under for the tourney, where he finished.
With his second Masters title, Mickelson joins 15 other golfers who have won multiple titles at Augusta National.
"It was a really fun day," he said. "It's been a long day, but a wonderful day. I will cherish that final round and look back at some of the shots I was able to pull off."
Mickelson got a lot of attention early in the week because he was carrying two drivers in his bag, one for draws and one for fades. He did that at the Atlanta tournament a week ago and won by 13 shots.
"It was huge," he said. "I worked with the technicians at Callaway and I've got 25 more yards with this driver that draws. And I needed it to combat the added length here at Augusta."
Mickelson had begun the day at 3 under par with 13 holes left in his third round and three shots off the lead. By the time he completed the third round Sunday morning, he had moved to 4 under par and was in the lead by one shot. He played in the final group with Couples and for the 16th straight year, the Masters winner came from the final group.
THE MASTERS
Final results
1. Phil Mickelson 281
2. Tim Clark 283
T-3. J.M. Olazabal 284
T-3. Retief Goosen 284
T-3. Tiger Woods 284
T-3. Fred Couples 284
T-3. Chad Campbell 284
T-11. Mike Weir 287
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