PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. — Phil Mickelson put himself on the brink of a fifth victory in the AT&T Pebble Beach pro-am by turning a three-shot deficit into a three-shot lead when a wild day of weather kept him from finishing on Sunday.
Mickelson will have to return at 8 a.m. on Monday to play the last two holes.
About the only thing that didn’t go Mickelson’s way was the timing. The final round started an hour late because of rain, and then was delayed two more hours when sunshine gave way to a hail storm that covered greens in white.
Mickelson, at 18 under par, wanted to finish, even in the dark. Paul Casey, the only other player in the tournament not to complete Sunday’s round, said he could barely see on the 16th hole.
And if the rain and hail weren’t enough, the wind chill dipped into the upper 30s.
Sam Saunders, whose grandfather Arnold Palmer was among the Pebble Beach owners, scooped up hail and tossed it like a snowball. Patrick Reed’s brother laid on his back and tried to make a snow angel.
Such days were known as “Crosby weather” when Bing Crosby was the tournament host for the better part of a half-century. Pebble had one round in 1962 postponed because of snow. Jimmy Demaret rolled out of his bed at the Lodge, looked at the 18th green and said, “I know I had a lot to drink last night … but how did I end up in Squaw Valley?”
The tournament has been on a great run for the last two decades, with a few exceptions. Dustin Johnson won the first of his two titles in 2009 when the final round was delayed until Monday because of rain, and then canceled because the storm system wouldn’t leave.
The last time the final round was played on Monday was in 2000, when Tiger Woods rallied from a five-shot deficit to win his sixth consecutive PGA Tour start.