PROFILE: Once the nearly man, now Mickelson joins elite group

By DB Peters Apr 12, 2010, 0:42 GMT

Augusta, Georgia - For the best part of a decade, Phil Mickelson was considered the nearly man.

The left-hander with the swashbuckling style was placed a handful of times in majors but when the pressure was on, he seemed to be found wanting.

All that changed when he won the Masters in 2004 and he soon added the US PGA title in 2005 and a second Masters title the following year.

Three barren years passed but Sunday's superb three-shot triumph at Augusta helped him get back on the winner's rostrum and also lifted him into a select group of players to have won three green jackets.

When he stood on the 13th tee on Saturday, Mickelson was five shots behind Westwood but from the moment he spanked a brilliant second shot to set up the first of back-to-back eagles, the fates seemed to be on his side.

One of the best shot-makers in the history of the game, Mickelson's flamboyant style has made him probably the most popular player on the PGA Tour.

The way he has coped with pain in his private life - both his wife and mother have been battling breast cancer - without ever flaunting it in public has also endeared himself to his fellow players, who are sure to cheer his win.

'It's something I'll always cherish,' an emotional Mickelson said.

'It's been an emotional year. I'm very proud of my wife and the fight and struggle she's been through. This has been one of the best things we've been through. To go through all that and come out the other side is something very special.'

While others might have used such pain as an excuse for an inability to focus, Mickelson showed on Sunday that he belongs among the elite group of players to win three or more Masters titles.

And on this kind of form, who is to say he won't go on to win more.

'I could go on and on about why, but to win this tournament is a special, special day,' Mickelson said.

And even in victory, he found time to sympathise with the efforts of Lee Westwood, whose valiant effort left him second, but still chasing his first Major triumph.

'Phil was saying to me that he used to be the man who kept on coming second and third. If I keep going I have to believe I can be a major champion one day.'