As Phil Mickelson crouched over his suddenly meaningless putt on the 18th hole at Winged Foot Sunday, one couldn't help but cringe at the entire scene. The driver in the trees, the three iron off a tree, the plugged lie in the sand, the Phil-bashing that would surely follow, the second and third guessing, and on and on.

Johnny Miller said it was "one of the biggest collapses in U.S. Open history." Ouch. I wouldn't go that far, though. If Phil had blown a four shot lead in two holes, or took and eight when a seven would win, then, yes. But par was a tough score on that or any other hole, save maybe a couple, at Winged Foot. Colin Montgomerie made double bogey after hitting his drive in the middle of the fairway. Don't forget that the winner of the tournament did finish five over par, and this was the sight of a 'Massacre' in 1974, when Hale Irwin won with a score of seven over par. Par therefore actually was a very good score. Although I can understand Mickelson's reasoning for hitting driver, (i.e. if you're going to be in the rough, hit it long and in the rough), a long iron or the four wood he was carrying certainly would have been the more prudent play, with it being the final hole. That aside, I don't know how much he can be faulted for trying his second shot, a three iron around a tree from 210 yards off a decent lie, especially having just witnessed his five iron on 17 in 'rough'ly the same situation. He made the green there, and two putted for par. Watching him address his second shot on 18, I actually expected him to wind up on the green or very near it, and make par to win. I think most golf fans did. That's what he had been doing all day after missing fairways. Perhaps luck just ran out on him, having hit only two fairways all day, which would make the case for hitting a different club off the tee that much stronger. Mickelson's a smart guy, and we say he should have known better. He's also Phil Mickelson, and if any of us were in his shoes with that kind of talent, the chances are pretty good we would have done the same thing, because we've done it before and would bet that we can do it again. In fact, didn't a lot of us expect him to chip in from the rough to make bogey and force a Monday playoff?

The beauty of golf is simple, yet complex, and sometimes very hard to explain or comprehend. There are no bad calls. Usually there are no calls at all. There are no teammates to rely on, nor to blame. No timeouts when you get in trouble. No silly stats like fourth quarter comebacks or quality starts. No player strikes or owner lockouts (yet). Just the player versus the course and the field. The results a player gets are almost always what the player deserves. Your soul is bared to the world when you fail, and you are the sole recipient of the accolades when you win. It, perhaps more than any other sport, is a game based solely on the current status of your ability.

I've wondered many times since Sunday's conclusion what would have happened had Mickelson played more conservatively and hit an iron off the tee. (Can you imagine the outcry had he played it safe and still lost? "What the heck is he doing? That's not Phil! He never plays like that and he picks NOW to do it?!" That certainly would have been an interesting discussion, as well.) There is no guarantee he would have made par even then, though chances are he would have made no worse than bogey. But then the chances were he makes no worse than bogey with driver in his hand, either. (If I'm working at Titleist, I'm proposing a new driver to Lefty. The Callaway just doesn't seem to be 'cutting' it these days).

Arnold Palmer led Billy Casper by seven shots at the turn in the '61 U.S. Open. Palmer decided to go for the record score. His over-agressiveness not only squandered the seven shot lead, but he also lost a playoff the next day, and never won another U.S. Open, though he had already won that tournament in the past. Phil's fall at Winged Foot could very well result in the same fate, leaving him only with a handful of second-place finishes. Only time will tell. We may never know exactly what Phil was thinking on the last hole, but I have a feeling it was something along the lines of "win it here and now. Forget the playoff."

It needs to be noted that Geoff Ogilvy hit two great shots the last two holes to remain at five over--the chip in at 17 and the chip onto the green at 18. The U.S. Open is a war of attrition, and Ogilvy was the last man standing. He deserves 'major' credit for this, and this could catapult him to the next level. That would be bad news for the rest of the tour, since he's proven over the last few seasons that he has the game to compete with just about anybody. And now he has shown he has the mental moxie as well.

Mickelson handled his crushing disappointment with class, as he always does. That is why he has so many fans. He is famous as much for who he is as what he is. He is one of the most prolific autograph signers on the PGA tour, and the masses love him for it. One can only hope he'll be back in major contention, and soon. He said during the Open that he likes the tournament because it's a severe test and it shows him where his game is at. He got an answer he wasn't prepared for at Winged Foot. Where his game goes from here is how he'll be judged in the future. Here's hope that he returns to the top of it.

Thanks for taking the time to read.