Who Is The Real Phil Mickelson?

Back in 2007, I featured the article below after Phil Mickelson won the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am. After Phil's win yesterday at The Masters, I think it's fitting to re-publish this article.

With all the attention that Tiger's negative lifestyle has garnered over the last six months, I think it's time to celebrate someone like Phil who has always put his wife and family first. If you watched The Masters yesterday, and saw Phil and Amy's hug after the tournament, you know what I'm talking about. It was an awesome sight to see...

--Re-Published from February 12, 2007--

First, I want to congratulate Phil for winning the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am. Phil blew away the field shooting a final round 66 to win the tournament by five shots. This is Phil's 30th career victory, which puts him in select company as he now has more career wins at age 36 than Lee Trevino, Johnny Miller and Ben Crenshaw had in their entire careers.

I have been a fan of Phil Mickelson's for a very long time. He's one of those golfers that I've pulled for for years and have always assumed he was a a nice guy considering how polite and nice he seems on television. Back in 2004, I was at the Masters on Sunday when he won his first Masters title. My wife and I were positioned to the left of the tee on #10, and after Phil teed off, he walked down the left side of the fairway passing directly by us. We both smiled and gave him a "Go Phil", and he did something that many professional athletes don't do, he smiled, tipped his hat and said, "Thank you and thanks for coming out." That may not sound like much, but try that same scenario with many other professional athletes while they're in the heat of the battle, and you're more likely to get ignored, glared at, or at best, a quick nod.

But, one nice "thank you" does not necessarily mean that the real Phil Mickelson is a nice guy. It means he's polite and respects the fact that the fans are as much a part of a golf tournament as he is.

What does make him a nice guy is a story I just read in this week's Golf World. The title of the article is, "Conrad Dobler's Favorite Golfer." Unless you are a die-hard historian of professional football, you probably have never heard of Dobler... Neither had I until I read this article. Conrad was once called the "dirtiest player in the NFL".

Because NFL players of the distant past did not make that much money, and the NFL's disability plan doesn't amount to much, Conrad lives a nice, but not too extravagant lifestyle considering he's had numerous surgeries on both knees. But, Conrad's entire life changed back on July 4, 2001. He and his wife Joy and their six children were relaxing while waiting for friends to come over for the holiday. His wife Joy was in their hammock and accidentally fell out of the hammock and couldn't feel anything. She's been a quadriplegic ever since. After numerous surgeries, doctor visits, etc., Conrad has had to downsize and sell almost all of his assets to keep the family afloat while paying for Joy's rehabilitation.

Enter Phil Mickelson. Phil's lawyer, Glenn Cohen, called Conrad up one day and told him that Phil had become aware of his situation and wanted to pay for his daughter Holli's college education. Conrad couldn't believe it because he had never met Phil and still hasn't to this day. Conrad asked Cohen why Phil was doing this, and his response was, "Because he can."

Phil does stay in touch with Holli who is now a sophomore at Miami of Ohio. She waits tables and has a heavy load of classes and currently has a 3.8 GPA. The first year, Phil sent $20,000, and he has promised cost of living increases every year promising $22,000 and then $24,000.

This random act of kindness by Phil has changed the lives of more than just Holli. It has made Conrad a better person, and it's given Joy the will to walk again. She's already made great strides and hopes to one day get out of the wheelchair for good. Phil has invited the entire family to the Memorial Tournament in May, and the family can't wait to meet him in person. As Joy says, "If there's anything he's missing in his life, it's a set of wings. He's an angel. And if I can when I see him for the first time, I'm going to go up and give him a big hug."

BECAUSE HE CAN! That is the real Phil Mickelson.

To me, this story embodies what it means to be successful. Being successful means having the ability to help others "because you can." There are so many people who could help others, but they choose not to. I'd like to challenge you to look for areas in your everyday life where you can perform a random act of kindness. You'll be surprised how many situations come up where you can help....

If you'd like to share your random acts of kindness with our readers, drop us a note on the comments page.

Good luck today and make it a great one!

A Southern Redneck, Two Kentucky Boys, A Hyper Kid, A Couple More Rookies and A Few Veterans Helped The U.S. Win The 2008 Ryder Cup

Whether you are a golf fan or not, if you missed watching the Ryder Cup this past weekend, you missed one of the best sporting events in the history of golf. The last time the U.S. won the Ryder Cup was 1999 when Justin Leonard made an incredible putt from about 45 feet.

This time, even without the world's greatest player Tiger Woods, the United States beat the European squad convincingly 16 1/2 - 11 1/2. It was an incredible three days. All of the U.S. players contributed to the win, but one player really made a name for himself. His name is Boo Weekley, and if you're not familiar with him, you need to get to know Boo. Boo's a self-described redneck from Milton, FL who loves to hunt and fish more than play golf. But, he does enjoy playing golf, and he's one heck of a good player.

In this year's win, Boo became the unofficial mascot, spokesman, cheerleader and comedian for the American team. From the beginning, he started egging on the crowd, and by the end, he had won over not only his teammates, but everyone in attendance at the event.

Here's a video I found online that will give you a look at who Boo Weekley really is. One thing you'll hear Boo say in this video is he's never met a stranger. I think this is a great lesson we all can learn from him. He treats everybody with respect and enjoys hearing their story.


One moment that the camera's and microphones caught during the matches that really stuck in my head was right after Boo had just won his singles match yesterday. As his wife came over to congratulate him and was hugging him and saying how great he played, etc., Boo quietly said, "Thanks, now we gotta go pull everyone else through." That's a team player. That's the type of person I want on my team whether it's work or play.

Congratulations again to the U.S. team for a job well done!

Until later, make it a great day.

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Tiger Woods Unbelievable Chip On The 16th Hole At The Masters in 2005

It's the week of the Masters Golf tournament, which is like the Super Bowl or World Series for golf fans. I thought I'd take a look at one of the most memorable moments in the history of the tournament this week. Today's video is from the 2005 tournament. It's Tiger Woods' 2nd shot on the par 3 16th hole, and it's one of the most unbelievable chips you'll ever see. I remember watching this on TV and I couldn't help but jump when Tiger's ball went in the hole. Enjoy!

Make it a great day!

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Golf Tournament To Support The Lilli Grace Memorial Foundation

I received an email from a reader (Thanks Eddie!) of PositivePelham.com the other day. He's going to be participating in a golf tournament to raise funds for a very, very worthy cause. I'm going to let him tell you what it's all about. Here is his email:

Won’t you help me honor Lilli’s legacy?

Lilli Grace Register was born through the miracle of research and technology. This miracle allowed her father, who fought two previous episodes with cancer (Hodgkins Disease Lymphoma), to actually conceive a child with his wife. Lilli Grace, who truly lived up to her name, was filled with great joy and had a smile that would light up a room. After only a short 18 months, this special child was tragically killed in an accident and I am asking for your help in continuing her legacy.

On April 21st, I will be participating in a significant and meaningful golf tournament as part of The Lilli Grace Memorial Foundation fund raising efforts. The Foundation provides support to many organizations leading the way in cancer awareness and child safety in the home. It is a proud supporter of the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society (through Team in Training), the The Two-Day Breast Cancer Walk and www.kidsandcars.org ..

My request is simple and straightforward. Would you consider sponsoring me to help these wonderful organizations continue in their much needed work? The easiest way is to simply visit www.lilligrace.com , click on the Donate button and make a SECURE donation using a major credit card through PayPal. When people come together in Grace, great things can be accomplished….. let’s help find ways to support and help those in need.
Thank you for making a difference!



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Steve Stricker Wins The Barclays PGA Tournament

It's great when nice things happen to nice people. For those of you who don't follow professional golf closely, you probably have never heard of Steve Stricker. Suffice it to say, he's a really good player who's had a lot of ups and downs over his career, but his victory yesterday was a very emotional time for him, and it was great for golf according to this article from NYDailyNews.com:

"Nice guys do finish first sometimes. It just took Steve Stricker another six years to get it done again."

"The man who once lost his PGA Tour card, who had to beg to get into tournaments, and who suffered the disappointments of this year's U.S. and British Opens, made a final birdie putt on the 18th hole at Westchester Country Club in Harrison to shoot a 2-under par 69 for a 16-under 268 total and a two-shot win over K.J. Choi in The Barclays yesterday."

To read this entire article, please go to this page on NYDailyNews.com.

Make it a great day!

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Phil Mickelson - The Players Champion

Congratulations to Phil Mickelson for winning the Players Championship today. You all know how big a fan of Phil's I am from this earlier post. If you didn't see the tournament today, you missed a great exhibition of golf as Phil played perfect golf.

To solidify my point that Phil Mickelson is a good guy, at the awards ceremony tonight after the tournament, Bob Costas was interviewing Phil and prefaced his questions with, "Phil, we don't have a lot of time, but the changes you've made with Butch Harmon really seemed to pay off today, didn't they?" And, Phil's answer was vintage Phil and right on the money for his character, "Bob, before we go there, I want to say Happy Mother's Day to my mom, my wife Amy and her mom."

That's class. Great job today Phil!

Make it a great day!

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