Mickelson's 3rd win proves it's more than golf

Nine months had passed since the Masters Tournament ended in an emotional family embrace, but Amy Mickelson's eyes welled up as though it were happening all over again.

"I still get emotional just talking about it," she said, apologetically. "It meant that much. It was just such a breath. It felt like a giant ... sigh."

In the midst of the toughest 18 months in his family's history, Phil Mickelson's 2010 Masters triumph provided a brief moment to exhale. The 11 months leading up to that Sunday at Augusta National Golf Club were all about coping with cancer that altered their idyllic lifestyle. For much of the seven months after it, arthritis provided a new health obstacle in the path of Mickelson's career.

For one euphoric moment in the middle, however, the Masters intervened.

"It came at a perfect time," Mickelson said of his third green jacket.

"This was a God-thing happening," said Steve Loy, his manager and former college coach. "It brought new life."

Jim "Bones" Mackay, Mickelson's longtime caddie, said he believes it was the pinnacle of their golfing life.

"It was tough, and that's what made him winning at Augusta more special," Mackay said. "Nothing is ever going to top that. Nothing's going to top that. He could win the grand slam and it wouldn't top the feeling of when it looked to be over and there was Amy on the back of the green. Nothing is ever going to be better than that."

Dedicated pairings

May 2009 was a cruel month for the women in Mickelson's life. On the same day his wife was diagnosed with breast cancer, his sister, Tina, suffered a miscarriage. Within weeks his mother, Mary, was diagnosed with breast cancer, too.

That would be enough to send anyone into a professional slide, but Mickelson was a model of perseverance in his day job. Between the inevitable low moments, there were some remarkable highs.

A week before Amy's first surgery in June, he came within a stroke of finally winning the U.S. Open. In September, Mickelson won the season-ending Tour Championship at East Lake and dedicated the victory to his wife, his mother and cancer survivors everywhere.

Stellar fall performances in the Presidents Cup and in a victory in China boded well for brighter days.

Golf seemed to be providing Mickelson with necessary relief from the hard realities at home.

"I recommend when a spouse goes through cancer, their spouse needs an outlet," Amy said. "Because everything is about you and your treatment and your needs. You need something to get away. Phil coming to work was like his release. I'm telling him to go. You need a break from me. I need a break from me. You need to go or you're going to go crazy. You need to take care of yourself."

As his wife endured the daily toll that the cancer medications were taking, though, her struggles seemed to be reflected in Mickelson's performances at the beginning of 2010. He had an uncharacteristic poor start, and at times seemed to be going through the motions on the golf course as he wrestled with whether to stay home or go to work.

"At that moment in the year Phil would probably have been better off going home and not playing -- never playing that year," Loy said.

Without his family on the road with him, Mickelson relied more than ever on Mackay. Their friendship was a bigger hallmark of their working relationship.

"It was up to Jim to really bring him up because Amy couldn't be out there with him to keep our boy propped up through that time," Loy said. "When he couldn't have those support systems, he was ready to check out more times than he was there. I can't tell you how strong a relationship that had become through thick and thin. They are definitely backstops for one another."

Said Amy: "What Phil was going through, taking care of me, Bones had a front-row seat for all of that, how hard that was on Phil."

Mickelson appreciated the extra miles that Mackay and his wife, Jennifer (Amy's best friend since they were college roommates), went in the past year -- from driving through the night to San Diego after the diagnosis to traveling to Houston for the surgeries to lend support as needed.

"Bones has been through this thing with us the past year, and Bones has been as good a friend as you can possibly imagine through this," Mickelson said. "He's been there ... (I) certainly couldn't have a better caddie, but couldn't have a better friend."

Mackay didn't consider it part of the job.

"Phil's been there for me in a personal fashion over the years, and I certainly want to return the favor," he said.

Mickelson has shown up before at Augusta with little reason for high expectations. It was 2003 -- the only season since 1999 that he had not won a tournament before coming to Augusta. His game was in shambles as he couldn't stop hitting 20-yard hooks with his long irons on the range. He was playing so poorly that his best option for preparation was going home and visualizing the shots he was incapable of hitting in practice.

"And he finished third," Mackay said. "He loves that tournament, and he literally willed himself. If you had watched him hit balls that week you'd have said this guy has no chance to make the cut. No chance. He had no idea where his ball was going. He just willed it because he loves that place."

That will was again his best hope in April 2010.

"You just go into that tournament with so much hope," Mackay said. "Everybody does. You just want to win the Masters. I don't care if you've won it before or haven't."

Mickelson says that Augusta is the one major venue where he doesn't have to be perfect and that the freedom buoys him even when his game is in distress. His enthusiasm begins building when he takes his annual pre-Masters visit and makes a point of eating breakfast in the Trophy Room or Champions Locker Room to drink in the atmosphere.

"That starts my excitement," he said. "I see all the clubs of the past champions, and I see the pictures from the golf course, and it creates this nostalgic feeling that creates excitement. I can't wait for this tournament to come around. I get very relaxed and feel very comfortable (at Augusta), and I'm in love with the place and it brings out the best in me."

Augusta was again the tonic for what was ailing Mickelson. While the golf world was obsessing about the return of Tiger Woods to public life from his off-season saga, the Mickelsons took a step closer to what they considered normal. Amy and their children traveled to a tournament for the first time in 11 months.

"It's really fun having them here, and it takes a lot of the heartache away," Mickelson said on the eve of the final round.

The combination of place and family seemed to elevate Mickelson's game in a most spectacular way.

"It had been a struggle on the golf course for Phil prior to that week," Mackay said. "So much going on at home. There was no reason for me to think Phil was going to go in there and shoot 67 on Thursday like he did or shoot 10 under on the weekend like he did or make all the eagles like he did. Looking back on it now, it almost seems too good to be true. Everything went really, really well."

More than just the golf

The 18th green of Augusta National has been the stage for many emotional scenes, but few as overwhelming as 2010 when the Mickelsons united at a tournament for the first time since Amy's cancer diagnosis.

"My wife was with Amy that day, and it was tough for Amy to get out there -- really, really hard for Amy to get out there, not only physically but emotionally," Mackay said. "She knows what she's getting into going out there. She hasn't been around and it's been something of a public battle that she had. It was amazing."

Neither Mickelson nor Mackay wanted to look for her behind the green for fear it could be a costly distraction. Even with a two-shot lead, they never relaxed until Lee Westwood missed his birdie putt. Only then did Mackay finally peek toward the scoring hut where Amy and the rest of the family were standing. Mackay started crying before Mickelson even putted out, admitting later he was "a puddle."

"I was still a mess an hour after the tournament was over," he said. "I wasn't ready to see my wife for a while. I wanted to kind of get my act together. It was emotional. I don't want to say I was so proud of Phil because that doesn't sound appropriate. But I was just so damn proud of what happened for him that week."

Even Mickelson -- who has displayed the ability to smile and remain stoic in the face of wrenching defeats -- let go of his emotions in a rare display as he hugged his wife for nearly a minute.

"He's never cried over a win or loss -- never," Amy said. "That's the first time in 20 years I've seen him shed tears over golf."

But it was more than just the golf.

"It was very uplifting and emotional to be able to share that together," Mickelson said. "Having Amy and the kids played a big part in me winning, because it was an incredible emotional support to have them there."

An incredible high

In spite of the health battles before and after his Masters triumph, the experience reaffirmed Mickelson's passion for the game.

"I had a greater awareness how much I love it here in the last year and a half, especially as I've used it as a way for me to cope and I've used it as a way for me to get a lot of enjoyment," he said. "And I think the Masters last year was an incredible high during a difficult time."

Though Mackay insists nothing will ever top last year's achievement, not everyone is so certain that Mickelson doesn't have an encore left in him at Augusta National.

"Let's wait and see," Loy said. "No telling what else is going to happen. But I don't think it's over yet. That's a pretty special place, and he can't wait to go back. Wish we could play there every week."

Reach Scott Michaux at (706) 823-3219 orscott.michaux@augustachronicle.com.