Who Is He?

The world's most famous left handed golfer was at one point in his career touted as the best player never to have won a major. But in more recent years, Phil has set about putting that right and in some fashion too. Now with four majors to his name, including three green jackets, Mickleson is touted as one of the games' greats.

He is a firm fan's favourite too, not just for the amount of time he spends signing autographs but also for the way he plays the game. There is never a dull moment watching Phil. You don't know whether you are going to get a 350 yard drive or an almost miraculous parachute style flop shot and whatever you get, it is sure to be exciting and accompanied by a great big smile.

What He Does

Mickleson's game has always been the epitome of 'hit it far, find it and hit it far again'. He has a long and languid swing action that has always generated massive club head speed but often not the control to compete at the highest level in major championship pressure. However, over recent years, Mickelson's pursuit of the majors has led to him making some fundamental changes to his technique in order to improve the quality of his bad shot. Mickelson's miss was always deemed to be too severe and under the pressure of a back nine on a Sunday could cost him dearly.

What Can You Learn?

Mickelson's over excessive leg action in the backswing enables his upper body to turn fully, the club can then be swung past the 3 o'clock horizontal line and quite severely across the line, the classic overswing position of many amateur golfers.

If you feel that your bad shots are too costly as well, try to learn from Mickelson in that keeping a more stable leg action and base will reduce your hip turn, and therefore reducing your shoulder turn, which should encourage your swing to stop short of the 3 o'clock horizontal position. The knock on effect should mean that you have more control at impact and therefore more good shots, but importantly less severe bad shots.

What Should You Avoid?

There is a lot to like about Mickelson's current game, particularly his imagination and flair with the short clubs. However, the over use of the trademark Phil Mickelson flop shot will see a lot of amateur golfers finding more green sided trouble. If you find you are playing the flop shot more than twice in a round of golf, there is a fair chance you are over using this particular brand of shot. Remember, keeping the ball close to the ground will always give you the safest and often best results.