Mickelson, O'Meara, Woods lead Friday surge of former Masters champions

Augusta, Ga. – It appeared that Bones Mackay, Phil Mickelson's caddie, was wearing a Minnesota North Stars T-shirt under his white coveralls on Friday at the Masters.

Mickelson said he didn't notice. Mackay, through an Augusta National member, declined to talk about it.

Whatever the motivation, the T-shirt worked well as a symbol Friday, as a few golfers old enough to remember the North Stars made nostalgic runs.

Mickelson shot a 68 to move to 6 under par and into sixth place. Another former Masters champion, Mark O'Meara, shot a 68 to move to 4 under, and his once and current friend Tiger Woods shot a 69, leaving him at 2 under.

Mickelson's play was remarkable because he has one top-10 finish in the past year. He birdied four of the last eight holes.

He also hinted that leader Jordan Spieth, who set a 36-hole record of 14 under, may not be at his best if the course firms up. "The course has not had much fire yet," Mickelson said. "Jordan has played extremely well, and when he has missed shots, he has been able to rely on his short game to get up and down."

Mickelson didn't say it harshly, but seemed to be indicating that Spieth may not look so dominant if the course dries out this weekend.

"I've been hitting the ball well almost all year," O'Meara said. "I played the practice rounds Monday and Tuesday with Tiger. Even he commented, like 'Wow, you're like driving it, man, you're a better driver of the ball than I've ever seen.' "

Woods' was remarkable because he couldn't even chip properly in the last tournament in which he played, in February.

"I'm proud of what I've done, to be able to dig it out the way I have," Woods said. "I told you guys I was at a pretty low point in my career, but to basically change the entire pattern like that and put it together and put it in a position where I can compete in a major championship like this is something I'm very proud of."