Golf's Great Divide

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The schism between Woods and Mickelson dates back at least two years, to when Mickelson called Woods' Nike clubs "inferior." Woods boiled. "It was a little sucker punch," says Fred Funk, this year's Players-championship winner. "That creates a bit of animosity between the guys." Mickelson apologized, but the bad blood spilled over to last fall's Ryder Cup, at which U.S. captain Hal Sutton paired Woods and Mickelson against European opponents. Although teammates, they could barely look at each other. It didn't help that Mickelson played like a Sunday hacker; when he sliced an 18th-hole drive into an impossible lie, Woods grimaced in disgust. But the dysfunctional dynamic is a gift for the tour. When the pair went shot for shot at the Ford championship on a Sunday in early March (Woods won by a stroke), NBC's year-over-year ratings ballooned 96%. Tour officials are salivating over the rebirth of classic rivalries like Jack Nicklaus-- Arnold Palmer and Nicklaus--Tom Watson that could sustain pro golf for a decade.

Handicapping Mickelson, 34, is now as much a part of the tour as plaid pants. "Lefty" never stops smiling, even on days that would cause most guys to smash a locker or three. After finishing in a tie for 40th at the Players championship, he dutifully signed autographs. Friends call his rapport with the fans genuine, even when the cameras aren't rolling. Says Chamblee: "When you're on tour, you'll invariably get a courtesy-car driver from the airport, and seven or eight times drivers have told me, 'Oh, I picked up Phil Mickelson last night, and you know, he could not have been any nicer.' And when you just want to get to the hotel, you don't have to be nice."

Mickelson's perpetual cheer in the world's most frustrating sport simply irks some players, including the intense Woods. "It's soooo programmed," says another player. "It's a strategy, but you know what? It's a damned good strategy because it's working." When asked about Mickelson's image, golf Hall of Famer and NBC analyst Johnny Miller breaks into a show tune. "Hah-lly-wood," he sings. "It's all Hollywood, man. Phil's a smart guy like that." Mickelson has no answer to accusations of excess gregariousness: "I don't really have anything to say. I really don't know what to say."

Mickelson's passions are diverse: family, flying and the unified theory of the universe. He's a fan of physicist Stephen Hawking. "I find it very fascinating[the concept of] traveling at the speed of light and how the aging process ceases and how the planet has been extinct 20 different times," he says. "It's just a much bigger picture than the here and now." One of Mickelson's closest friends on the tour, Davis Love III, chuckles at his pal's cosmic ruminations. "Basically, I'm like, 'What the hell?'" he says. "Obviously, he's a very smart guy. But sometimes that leads to quirkiness." And leads others to roll their eyes.