Phil Mickelson Ends Season on a High Note, Prepares for 2010

(2009 TOUR Championship Winner Phil Mickelson with Tiger Woods)

Years from now, Phil Mickelson will remember 2009 not for the three PGA TOUR victories he obtained, but for the challenges his mother and wife endured while fighting and defeating breast cancer.

The year was one of off-course struggles and on-course triumphs for Mickelson and, fittingly, he ended the season a high note - with a three stroke victory over long-time rival and world number one Tiger Woods.

While Woods obtained the $10 million FedEx Cup prize, Mickelson captured what Woods was truly seeking - another PGA TOUR victory.

The win was Mickelson's third of the season (Northern Trust Open and World Golf Championship - CA Championship) and first in THE TOUR Championship since 2000. With the 37th PGA TOUR victory of his career, Mickelson seems poised for success in 2010.

While finishing in second-place in the 2009 FedEx Cup race and obtaining second-place in the World Golf Rankings once again, Mickelson owes some of his recent success to Dave Stockton, the two-time PGA Champion who helped Mickelson with his putting stroke during the past week.

Two weeks ago, Mickelson was searching for a method to improve his putting, an aspect of his game which has been rather inconsistent this season, leading to some of Mickelson's dissapointing finishes in 2009. After speaking with his long-time caddy Jim "Bones" McKay, Mickelson decided to talk to Dave Stockton, one of the most talented short game experts in the game.

With Stockton's help, Mickelson shot 66 and 65 during the last two rounds of THE TOUR Championship to defeat Woods by three shots and Sean O'Hair by four.

With his wife and mother's improving health, Mickelson will once again be able to focus entirely on his golf game during the off-season and in 2010. As Mickelson returns to prominence, his fellow PGA TOUR competitors and fans will not be surprised if he captures his first major championship since the 2006 Masters, quite likely at Augusta National.

There would be no sweeter major championship victory for Mickelson than to have his healthy wife and mother with him next April as he tries on his third green jacket.