Some have mentioned how bad Mickelson looks wearing the white belt, but it seems there is more going on that Phil should consider.
Wearing the white belt Saturday, Mickelson shot himself out of contention with a third round 75 at the Quail Hollow Championship.
Jason Sobel's ESPN blog reports that a reader who had crunched the numbers and discovered the Phil averages +1.8 strokes over par with the white belt!!
http://sports.espn.go.com/golf/notebook?pa...eekly18-090426l
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[b]"From the inbox[/b] This week's e-mail comes from David Axelson in Atlanta -- and might be one of the best to hit the inbox all year. In it, he discusses Phil Mickelson's new-found allegiance toward wearing a white belt for competitive rounds:
It's a trend that bears watching. I understand that this is an epic waste of time, but I've been able to document 21 of 23 stroke-play rounds. (He also wore a white belt in his Match Play defeat.) In five of those rounds the cursed belt was worn, only once was he able to break par -- at Poppy Hills in Round 2 of the AT&T -- for a stroke average of +1.8 compared to a -1.2 season average and -2.3 in dark belt rounds.
In wins, the white belt was only worn for the second round at Riviera, a 1-over 72 after shooting 63 in the first round. No white belts at Doral, although three white shirts -- a decision that may have won him the championship.
At the Masters, he wore the white belt in the first round (1-over 73), but never again, posting scores of 68-71-67 in the final three rounds.
Two initial reactions after reading that e-mail:
1. Can someone in the ESPN research department sign up David for an internship or something? That was some strong number-crunching.
2. If Mickelson ever gets wind of these numbers, we may see him retire the white belt for good. I'm serious. This is a guy who deeply believes in the power of statistics; knowing that he plays 4½ strokes per round worse with this accessory around his waist could be enough info to keep him from traversing to that side of the closet ever again.
As stated in the e-mail, this exercise might be "an epic waste of time," but it bears watching to see whether Mickelson continues donning the white belt -- and whether his scores keep inflating with each instance."
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Too funny. "Epic waste of time??" I think NOT! Phil - please ditch the white belt!!