Phil Mickelson gained a lifetime exemption on the USPGA Tour after claiming his 20th career title with a play-off victory over David Berganio jnr at the Bob Hope Classic in California on Sunday. Mickelson finished an eight-under-par 64 with three straight birdies before beating Berganio with another at the par-5 18th hole at the PGA West/Palmer Course, and joins Tiger Woods as the only other player under 50 to gain a Tour exemption.
31-year-old Mickelson had not played a PGA Tour event since August, opting to spend time with his family following the birth of his second child. However, he soon settled into the form which saw him rise to second in the world behind Woods, opening and closing the third tournament of the season with 64s en route to a 90-hole total of 30-under 330.
Mickelson won on the first play-off hole, overcoming a drive into a fairway bunker with a third shot that nearly dropped into the hole. Berganio put his second shot of the play-off into the water at the front of the green. Berganio, from Los Angeles, played the back nine in five-under en route to a 66, sinking a five-foot birdie putt at the 18th to force the extra holes.
Briny Baird, a runner-up at the John Deere Classic last July, tied for third with Cameron Beckman at 332.
Filed by Shane Murray
