Mickelson wins hearts as he tries to win the US Open with his wife facing cancer

Lefty winning hearts as he tries to win the Open

FARMINGDALE, N.Y. — He won their hearts the last time, even though he couldn’t win their tournament. Tiger Woods stood in his way, as he so often does, but that didn’t stop New Yorkers from showing a lot of love for the swashbuckling lefty who kept grinning even as his chances of winning slipped away.

Seven years later, they’re pulling for Phil Mickelson again. They welcomed him back Wednesday as if he was an old family friend, lining the fairways and crowding around the greens to offer words of encouragement and wish him a happy, belated 39th birthday.

This time, though, there’s more at stake than just a U.S. Open trophy.

You wouldn’t have known it from watching as Mickelson smiled his way around Bethpage Black in a final tuneup for the title he so desperately covets but has yet to win. Seemed just like old times as he flashed a thumbs up to anyone who shouted his name and handed a ball to the cutest kid he could find between each hole.

The crowd knew, though they also knew enough not to bring it up. No reason to intrude on the one spot where he could find some solace, even if this is New York.

They could have yelled words of encouragement for his wife, Amy. But that was already understood, so they yelled for the man himself.

And being New Yorkers, they yelled a lot.

“We love you Phil!”

“Good luck on Sunday!”

“Lefty!”

Mickelson wasn’t even going to be here, because his wife’s health means more than being a U.S. Open champion, even to a player who may want it more than anyone in the field. He retreated from the golf course when his wife was diagnosed with breast cancer and it wasn’t until two weeks ago that he made the decision to play.

The cancer, though, seems to have been caught early, and Mickelson seems increasingly optimistic that she will be OK. Though her treatment hasn’t started — she’s having surgery July 1 — playing in the Open seemed like a better idea than pacing around the house.

And she already has her husband on a mission.

“She’s left me a number of little notes, texts, cards, hints, that she would like to have a silver trophy in her hospital room,” Mickelson said. “So I’m going to try to accommodate that.”

In a strange way, his chances may never be better in a tournament he has come so agonizingly close to winning. Indeed, the first Open he thought he would miss in 16 years could be the first Open he wins.

That’s largely because, other than trying to accommodate his wife, the pressure is off. There are no expectations, because there was never enough time to let them build and, besides, Woods is everyone’s pick to repeat anyway.

He’s hitting the ball perhaps better than ever, even though he hasn’t played much.

“Can he hold his concentration over 72 holes? That’s the question. But that might not be a bad thing,” said Mickelson’s swing coach, Butch Harmon. “Phil has proven that he can overanalyze things too much sometimes. Maybe keeping everything simple will be a good thing.”

There wasn’t anything too complicated about his practice round on a beautiful day at one of the two most famous munis in the country. Just a lot of Phil being Phil, which was plenty enough for the fans who took pictures and cheered him on as he walked by.

His support system — Amy and the three kids — won’t be here this week, and she won’t be in the gallery, as usual, watching every shot. But the 42,500 who will pack Bethpage every day will offer a form of support of their own and won’t be shy about showing their love.

Mickelson, of course, is used to being the fan favorite. He’s played the common guy up against the superstar for so long now that it seems ingrained in his DNA.

The danger this week is that it might all be too much. The emotional strain coupled with the emotional outpouring from the crowd might knock him off his game.

“Possibly,” Mickelson said. “Or it could be that that support helps carry me through emotionally when I’m on the course. I’m certainly hoping for that.”

So are a lot of New Yorkers, and not just because they want to see someone knock off Woods. They’ve watched Mickelson in action, and they like what they’ve seen.

On this day they saw plenty, and they seemed to like him even more. Even as he worries about his wife and frets about his swing, Mickelson seems to have a thumbs up or smile for everyone.

One young fan in a wheelchair off the 17th tee did even better. Mickelson leaned over the ropes for a hug and brief chat before moving on to the green. The boy’s face lit up with a delighted smile that lasted long after Mickelson had gone.

For Mickelson and the fans at Bethpage, there’s hope they’ll soon have even more to smile about.

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Tim Dahlberg is a national sports columnist for The Associated Press. Write to him at tdahlberg (at)ap.org