With The Players moving to March, fresh rye grass growing and Phil Mickelson targeting only courses he can win at, his rationale for possibly skipping The Players Championship is sound. Except that in Ponte Vedra, these are fighting (and fining) words!

From Will Gray’s GolfChannel.com item:

“It’s not one I feel like I have to play,” Mickelson said. “It’s not a must-play for me because I’m 48 and I’ve played it 25 times and I’ve already won it. If I were young and early in my career, I would say yes because I think it’s as close to a major as it can get. But it’s not the best course for me.”

That’s a no, he’s passing.