AFTER five weeks away from the game helping to take care of his wife Amy, who has been diagnosed with breast cancer, Phil Mickelson faces an emotional return to competition today when he tees up at the St Jude Classic in Memphis.
The left-hander is using the tournament in Tennessee as part of his preparations for next week's US Open at Bethpage. He paid thanks yesterday to his peers on the PGA Tour for their support during the tournament at Colonial and said he and Amy hardly
knew how to express their gratitude.
He was also thankful to the media for the articles written about his wife, whom he described as the most charismatic person he'd ever met. "She's made my life so fulfilling and I'm so lucky to be married to her," he said.
"We're going through a tough time and she won't start her treatment until July. We caught it early and, hopefully, don't have to rush into any of the decisions which will beat this and prevent it from recurring.
"It's difficult to separate things at times, but these last three weeks have been interesting, I've never felt this emotional. I'll be driving and just start crying. It's kind of a weird thing. I'm looking forward to having a four or five hour mental break (on the course) where I have to force myself to focus on something else.
"Yes we're scared. A lot of it is the unknown. We believe we've caught it early but won't know until a week or two after surgery. But I don't think it will carry over into my play. I believe I can win at Bethpage next week."
It now seems unlikely that Mickelson will travel to Scotland next month for the Scottish Open and the Open. "I don't know when I'll play again," he said. "I don't think it will be for a while, but I don't know."
Meanwhile, there's a strong European presence at the TPC Southwind with Ryder Cup players Sergio Garcia, Henrik Stenson and Graeme McDowell in the field as well as Padraig Harrington, who features in the same group as Mickelson. The Irishman concedes his recent form has been poor, but is now ready to focus on scoring rather than tinkering with his swing.
"I've got to get back to working on my scoring," said Harrington. "I'm comfortable with what I've been doing technically."
Martin Laird, who will be Scotland's lone representative at Bethpage next week, is also in the field for the St Jude.
