Now another member of the Mickelson family is due.
Amy Mickelson, a psuedo-celebrity after posing in Sports Illustrated's swimsuit edition two years ago, is expecting the couple's first child June 30.
The question now is which Mickelson, Amy or Phil, will deliver the family's major addition first.
With Mark O'Meara winning two majors a year ago, the wretched title of best player to never to win the big one falls on the shoulders of Mickelson or Colin Montgomerie. Mickelson has won 13 PGA Tour events in the '90s, second only to Nick Price's 15 for decade dominance.
At 28, Mickelson is the elder statesmen of Generation Next, and has made more money than any of them. To complete his golf legacy, Mickelson understands how important capturing a major will be.
What makes his expectations that much greater are top-10 finishes in the PGA, the U.S. Open, and two times in the Masters. Yet, whenever he's contended, like the '97 PGA and the '95 U.S. Open, he seems to stumble when prosperity hits him.
And like the '98 Masters, when Mickelson stood tied for second entering the the final round, two strokes behind leader Fred Couples. Mickelson reached the treacherous 12th, and needing some momentum to join the cadre of leaders, he promptly dumped his iron shot into Rae's Creek for a final-round 74.
Mickelson would appear to have the ideal skills to conquer Augusta National's grounds -- he is among the game's longer hitters, his imagination around greens superb, his putting touch, at times, silky smooth.
``What happens to me there is that I get that one bad swing, that one bad break, and that tends to send me into a flux,'' Mickelson said. ``I'm still learning how to turn adversity into something positive.''
So far in 1999, Mickelson admitted that his concentration has wandered more to his expecting wife than his golf results. His year's first top 10 came at Bay Hill last month.
``There's not too much I can do fatherhood-wise because the child's not due for another two months,'' he said. ``I enjoy spending time with Amy right now because this is a difficult time for her. The pregnancy hasn't been the easiest. However, that's absolutely no excuse on the effect of the way I play. It's just when I've been getting on the course, I haven't been as focused on managing the golf course as I have been. Stupid mistakes have been killing me.''
The Mickelsons have spent the last four weeks driving to each tournament, making the travel easier for Amy. Phil is playing at Hilton Head next week, then planning an extended family break.
``It's a chance to get a lot of tournaments in through April. That way May, June, July I'll be able to take a bunch of time off and spend it with her,'' Mickelson said.
``Being a father is definitely cool. This is something that Amy and I have wanted for a while.''
Chip shots: Phil Mickelson
You can submit a question to Mickelson on his own web site, www.phil-mickelson.com.
Mickelson expecting big event 
