Phil Mickelson goes for fourth jacket

The big news during Tuesday’s practice round might have been what happened to Phil Mickelson at the par-3 sixth.

A fan bet Mickelson $1 he couldn’t get up and down for par from behind the green. When he missed his 7-foot putt, Mickelson paid up.

“He was mouthing off about hard shot, get this up and down, no chance, blah, blah, blah,” the three-time Masters Tournament champion said. “And it wasn’t that hard a shot, and I should have gotten it up and down and I did hit a good shot. I had a 7-footer straight uphill and I missed it, and I had to pay him. That’s what happens when you lose.”

Mickelson isn’t thinking about losing any more this week. The No. 5 player in the world has designs on moving into a tie for second place in Masters history with four green jackets.

Mickelson, the reigning British Open champion, said he’s healthy after pulling an oblique muscle two weeks ago. After withdrawing from the Texas Open, he returned to tie for 12th place Sunday at the Houston Open.

“Last week I felt great, which I was surprised, because I had pulled a muscle in Texas and I felt great all four rounds,” Mickelson said. “I had been doing physio ball work and stuff to strengthen my back every morning, every night, for weeks and weeks to make sure that I enter this week feeling good, healthy and I’m able to swing as hard as I want and hit the shots that I need to try and hit.”

At the 2004 Masters, Mickelson shed his “Best Player Never to Win a Major” label. With his 18-foot birdie putt on the final hole, he snapped an 0-for-42 streak in the majors. Mickelson joked Tuesday that he’s now 5 for 83.

“I can’t believe it’s been 10 years. It’s gone by so quick,” he said. “It’s been so enjoyable to be a past champion here, knowing that I get to come back here every year and that I get to be a part of this tournament, and to have added a couple in that time span, too, is pretty special.

“That win 10 years ago, it just propelled me. I knew once I won one, I really felt confident I would win a few, but I needed to get that first one, and that was a big one.”

Mickelson has had limited success in 2014, with three top-20 finishes in seven tournaments. That might be a good thing. The last time he failed to win before the Mas­­­ters was 2010, when he captured his third win in Augusta. If he wins this week, he’ll join Ar­nold Palmer and Tiger Woods as the only players with four Masters titles, two behind all-time leader Jack Nicklaus.

“I do know that Arnold and Tiger have four jackets and I have three,” Mickelson said. “I know Jack has six, but nothing I can do about that right now. I’m just trying to get back to where the two ahead of me are.”