AUGUSTA, Ga. -- There was a time around here when Phil Mickelsons nerves were stretched so tight, you could bounce a quarter off em and have it land in Atlanta. That was exactly 10 years, five majors and three green jackets ago. He arrived that week 0 for 42 in the tournaments that matter and left as one of the most contented men on the planet. Back at the scene of that first major win for his interview session Tuesday, Mickelson was charming and so much the master of his domain you half-expected him to wade into the gathering of reporters and pull that same quarter out from behind someones ear. Now 43, Lefty was at ease, deftly tucking many of those reporters first names into his answers and lavishing praise on the conditions at Augusta National and even long-time rival Tiger Woods, who will miss his first Masters in 20 years while recovering from back surgery. "Its a weird feeling not having him here, isnt it?" Mickelson said, unbidden. Then again, he could afford to be gracious. Mickelson sat down at the podium fresh off a big win in one of those high-stakes practice rounds for which hes become notorious "Curious on practice rounds," a reporter said. "Watching former champions going out with younger players, youve done that in the past, and the mentoring that goes on in the early part of this week. Just curious the extent that you do that now as a past champion." "Yeah, mentoring or wagering," Mickelson said to laughter. "Either way you want to look at it. "Rickie Fowler and I were partners today and he went on a tear. He shot 30 the front nine; he eagled 13, he birdied 17 and 18, threw another one on 15, I think. Just played remarkable golf. It was fun," Mickelson added, "to have him as my partner." "Speaking of wagering," another reporter asked a few moments later, "I head you lost a dollar to a patron behind the sixth green; couldnt get up and down. Is that right?" Mickelson tried not to blush. "He was mouthing off about hard shot, get this up and down, no chance, blah, blah, blah. And it wasnt that hard a shot, and I should have gotten it up and down and I did hit a good shot. I had a 7-footer straight uphill and I missed it, and I had to pay him," he said. "Thats what happens when you lose." "Do you always carry small bills?" came the follow-up. "Did he have change?" "I had to get a five from a caddie," Mickelson replied, trying harder not to blush. "I dont." The longer he goes on spinning tales that are insightful or funny -- and sometimes both -- the more Mickelson sounds like one of the games elder statesmen. But unlike Jack Nicklaus, 74, and Arnold Palmer, 84, who reminisced about his last major win 50 years ago, Mickelson is still a very real threat to win every time he tees it up. Hes still ranked No. 5 in the world, but hasnt had a top-10 finish this season and his last win was last summers almost magical victory at the British Open. More problematic, perhaps, Mickelson has been hobbled by back and muscle injuries for months, not pronouncing himself "100 per cent healthy until last week. He even admitted to some nerves "because I always like coming into this week with a win. ... being in contention a few times and having that confidence and experience to build on." But if Mickelson was concerned about his chances, he might have been the only one in the room. "Now that youve won five Majors," came the question, "how cognizant are you of climbing the ladder of historical greats where you have (Lee) Trevino at six, Arnie at seven? Is that something you think about, where you stand in relation to those figures?" "Not really," Mickelson began. "But I do know that Arnold and Tiger have four jackets and I have three. I know Jack has six, but nothing I can do about that right now. Im just trying to get back to where the two ahead of me are." Yet its hard to imagine Mickelson having more fun with yet another green jacket than he did with the previous ones. He slept in it the first night after winning, wore it in the drive-through line at Krispy Kreme one morning, and donned it at dinner more often than a colour-blind waiter. Even though Mickelson could have gone on for hours, the moderator signalled last question "What are your strongest memories of being on 18 10 years ago?" he was asked. "What comes right to mind?" "I jumped so high I almost hit lightning that day," Mickelson replied. "Unfortunately the photographers, they just didnt time it right, so its very, yeah, I felt like that was an unfair assessment of that leap. Because I probably could have dunked a basketball if need be." Y.A. Tittle Womens Jersey . Floyd participated in the first day of the Chargers organized team activities Tuesday. In his words, "Its good to be back out there. Im cleaned for contact. Ian Williams Youth Jersey . 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Dirk Nowitzki scored 25 points, Shawn Marion had 22 and the Mavericks beat undermanned Philadelphia 124-112 Friday night, handing the 76ers their 10th straight loss.LOS ANGELES -- Justin Williams and the Los Angeles Kings know theyre one of the NHLs best teams whenever their streaky offence measures up to their ever-sturdy defence. After a dominant win over an Eastern Conference power, Williams is confident the Kings are headed back into balance. Williams had a power-play goal and an assist in his 800th career game, Jonathan Quick made 20 saves and the Kings slowed their recent slide with a 4-2 victory over Boston on Thursday night. Jeff Carter, Alec Martinez and captain Dustin Brown also scored for the Kings, who won for just the second time in eight games by thoroughly outplaying the Atlantic Division leaders. After a prolonged slump, Los Angeles goal-scorers might be waking up: Carter launched 10 shots and scored his 16th goal, while Browns third-period score gave the Kings more than three goals for the first time in nine games since Dec. 19. "Sometimes things have a way of evening out when youre not scoring," Williams said. "I thought we were very assertive tonight. ... We should be proud of the way we responded when they pushed us, and we should be proud we scored four goals on a stingy defensive team." Although the Kings have allowed the NHLs fewest goals, their meagreoffence has knocked them off the scorching pace set by the rival Anaheim Ducks atop the overall league standings. But their defence is still dominant, no matter whos in goal: Quick earned his second win since his return from a 24-game injury absence, allowing just four goals in three games. "Being out for seven weeks, it seems like he didnt even miss a game," Brown said. "Thats why hes the best goalie." Justin Florek scored his first career goal for the Bruins, who have lost on the first two stops of their three-game California road trip. Tuukka Rask gave up three goals on 18 shots before Chad Johnson replaced him. "Were just not getting it done right now," Johnson said. "We just need to regroup and take as many positives as we can from these games and realize what we need to do to have success and win games. I think it just comes down to intensity and that passion to want to win games. Thats what were lacking.dddddddddddd When were sitting back, were not a good team." Matt Fraser also scored for Boston, which had another frustrating offensive performance in its fifth loss in six road games despite the landmark goal from Florek, who tipped home a shot in front of Quick on a power play with 2:13 to play. "We know we can play much better than we are right now," Boston captain Zdeno Chara said. "Thats whats frustrating. We need to get our game back. Its not going to happen overnight, and its not going to happen by trying to make some high-risk plays. Weve just got to stay patient and slowly gain our game back. Weve just got to grind it out." Carters opening goal was his sixth in nine games, highlighting a 10-shot performance by the Canadian Olympic team selection. The Bruins killed off a penalty to Dougie Hamilton spanning the first intermission, but Hamilton stuck his stick out of the penalty box to play the puck as his penalty expired, putting him right back in the box for interference. Williams beat Rask with a wrist shot moments later for his 14th goal. Just 1:01 later, Martinez scored his first goal in three weeks on a long, wobbly shot, chasing Rask. Hamilton forced a turnover midway through the period that led to Frasers goal on a setup from Carl Soderberg. But the Kings clamped down on defence again, and Brown scored his ninth goal in the third period on a well-placed wrist shot. "We didnt get much from our top two lines, and you need that if youre going to win some hockey games," Bruins coach Claude Julien said. "They were pretty quiet tonight." NOTES: Bruins F Shawn Thornton served the final game of his 15-game suspension for attacking Pittsburghs Brooks Orpik on Dec. 7. The notorious fourth-liner is eligible to return Saturday in San Jose. ... The Bruins hadnt visited Los Angeles since March 2012. The teams meet again Jan. 20 in Boston. ... Florek was playing in his third career game. He scored his first point two nights earlier in Anaheim. ... Milan Lucic returned to the Bruins lineup after missing one game with an illness. ... Quick earned an assist on Williams goal. cheap nfl jerseys authentic jerseys nfl wholesale wholesale jerseys cheap jerseys wholesale jerseys ' ' '
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