Golf-Bring on the rain and wind, says upbeat Mickelson

SANDWICH, England, July 15 (Reuters) - Phil Mickelson will be monitoring the weather forecasts for England’s Kent coast hoping for wind and rain as he prepares to have a blast at the British Open over the weekend.

For a Californian whose shot-making skills have surprisingly never shone on the seaside links courses that traditionally host the major, it would appear a strange preference yet the 41-year-old believes if he has to don the waterproofs it could offer him his best chance of victory.

The four-times major champion will go into the weekend handily placed in the pack at one-under-par after adding a second round 69 to his opening 70 on Friday and he believes he can master whatever weather descends on Sandwich, and the rougher the better as far as he is concerned.

“It’s fun to be in contention heading into the weekend of the British,” Mickelson, whose attacking style usually misfires at the Open where his best finish was third at Troon in 2004, told reporters after a measured round containing 15 pars.

“One of the things I’m looking forward to is actually the bad weather. I hope that it comes in and that we get faced with that. Historically I have not played great in windy conditions and rain, but I welcome the challenge.

“I’m looking forward to that challenge and I’m hoping I’ve got the shots now to be effective in it.”

Conservatism is not normally a word easily attached to Mickelson’s game but he said the kind of clinical par golf, once the domain of Britain’s Nick Faldo, is within his capabilities and he could move up the leaderboard should the wind start blowing rivals out of contention.

Despite the glorious sunshine and warm temperatures experienced during the second round, latest forecasts predict rain and winds strengthening to as much as 35mph come Sunday.

“Everybody is going to have to play in it, and the fact that everybody is going to have to play in it just means that you can make up ground with pars rather than have to make birdies,” Mickelson, who has made just three bogeys in two rounds, said.

Mickelson, who played the rain-interrupted Scottish Open last week to prepare for Sandwich, said he had added a new shot to his armoury—a low-flighted three-wood.

“It’s a little element that I’ve been working on and it’s been very helpful,” he said.

“I’ve been working on this very low shot off the tee, very low driver, low three-wood, and I’ve been able to control it and get it to roll along the ground easy.

“I’m not fighting the wind as much. So when I get a direct cross wind, I get the ball on the ground quicker and I don’t have that big miss as much because it’s not in the air as long.

“Some of the shots we hit here we’ll never have to hit in the States, a driver that carries 180, 200, just get it on the ground and get it running.

“We don’t really have that need for the shot over in the States. It’s fun to have to learn how to hit those effectively.”