Phil Mickelson isn’t winning the PGA Championship. That’s like expecting Britney Spears to drop the trailer park schtick and transform into Gwyneth Paltrow. At a certain point, your character’s set.

No, that 2004 Masters will remain Mickelson’s one shining moment. Your future majors count is still going to read Tiger 22, Phil 1 when it’s all said and done.

But Phil Mickelson can save the PGA Championship this weekend. This is the major that’s barely holding onto its major status and the PGA knows it. They tout the fact that the PGA has the best field of all the majors so often they sound like the third-grade nerd pleading, “Pick me! Pick me!” when gym class teams are divvied up. In fact, the PGA is so desperate to pretend there is Masters- or British Open-worthy buzz around this tournament that they told everyone again and again that Baltusrol was a virtual sellout, when it was really anything but.

The day before the tournament, the PGA comes out and finally sheepishly admits, Oh yeah, plenty of tickets still available.

No one’s planning a golf trip around the PGA Championship the way they do the Masters, the U.S. Open or the British. It just doesn’t have the same aura. Never will. The PGA is more aware of this than anybody, having told their members they need to reduce the number of club pros allowed into the field so that the Players Championship does not replace the PGA as golf’s fourth major.

Which brings us back to Phil. With Tiger Woods in a funk, having seemingly come into a major overconfident for once (I’m always forecasting a Tiger comeback, not this time, this is different), the PGA is dependent on Golf’s Good Guy Gagger. It needs Phil to hold off his coughing fit till the back nine on Sunday, to draw the casual fan’s interest.

This weekend, it’s all on Phil.

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