PALM BEACH GARDENS — Phil Mickelson is being tight-lipped about his potential move to South Florida.
The Hall of Fame golfer was reported to be building a home on Jupiter Island but said Saturday he has yet to start construction.
Although Mickelson said “the plan” is to move here, he also said he wanted to “hold off” on talking about his reason for the decision. “A lot of great things around the area,” was all he would say.
When asked if he still could make the move from his home in Rancho Santa Fe, Cal., to Florida this summer, Mickelson, 50, said: “We’re looking at that as an option. We still have to build. We have a lot. We haven’t built on it yet.”
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Mickelson, though, appears to be enjoying his week in the area since arriving for the Honda Classic. After shooting a 69 Saturday, he praised the Pete Dye-designed Champion course.
“This golf course, conditions, setup-wise, like it’s so well done that you got a lot of options,” Mickelson said. “It’s playable, it’s tough, it’s difficult, I mean it’s really, really good. It’s been a pleasure to play because, even as the conditions have gotten more difficult, it’s still playable. You can play it with angles, different — it’s just really well done.”
Mickelson birdied Nos. 11 and 12 to shoot a 33 on the back nine. He has rebounded from an opening round 71 to shoot a 68 and 69, putting him at 2-under entering Sunday’s final round. This is Mickelson’s fourth appearance at the Honda, and he has never finished higher than 17th.
Mickelson, who has won five majors among his 44 PGA Tour championships, believes the weekend will help him prepare for the Masters, which is in three weeks.
“Because the rough is more like Augusta first cut, what it does is it allows you to, first of all, get ready for the Masters, which I think is really cool of them to do, and then second it allows you to play angles into some of these difficult pins that are tucked,” Mickelson said. “And when you get a challenging wind like this you still have a chance to play it. Even if you miss a shot here or there you can fight your way and try to salvage a par. I just think it’s a brilliantly conditioned and set up golf course.”
