PGA

• 108th U.S. Open Final Round News and Notes

  
  

  La Jolla, CA (Sports Network) - Phil Mickelson actually played well on Sunday, shooting a three-under 68 to move up the leaderboard, but this was a week lost for the world's No. 2.

  "I felt like my game was there, I was able to practice and work on it. And I felt like I was ready," said Mickelson, who tied for 18th place. "I just didn't score, I just didn't perform.

  "This has been a great Open championship, obviously I would like to have played better, but the way the course has been presented, the way it was set up, it was the fairest, best test of golf." Unfortunately, the hometown favorite could never recover from disastrous quadruple-bogey nine on the par-five 13th on Saturday. Mickelson took four shots from short of the green in round three and at the time was five-over par for the championship.

  "I'm five-over par, trying to get in the tournament, and it's a par-five, I can't afford to let a birdie opportunity slide," Mickelson acknowledged on Sunday.

  "And so I got aggressive at it. I don't regret the decision to go at the pin. I just regret coming up a few yards short." Mickelson had one of the better rounds on Sunday. He made birdie at the third, then parred every hole until a bogey at 12. After a par at his nemesis, the 13th, Mickelson closed with three birdies in his last five holes.

  He will use his 38th birthday on Monday to kick off a vacation.

  "I'm going to take three weeks off and get ready for a stretch run through the rest of the year," said Mickelson.

  "I'll leave for the Scottish Open in preparation for the British Open. We have two majors left, we have the FedEx Cup, we have the Ryder Cup, we have a lot of big events and I want to get my game sharp for that." Mickelson even used Sunday's final round of the U.S. Open for preparation for the season's third major.

  "I just tried to play a good round and use it as a stepping stone into the British and some of the things I want to work on for the British," he said.

  THOMPSON LOW AM Michael Thompson, the runner-up last year to Colt Knost at the U.S. Amateur Championship, finished as the low amateur for this year's U.S. Open.

  Thompson shot a one-over 72 on Sunday and finished in a tie for 29th place at plus-eight.

  "I played a great summer schedule, played for a great school, had a chance at the NCAA's, played in the Masters, now come here, finish off the U.S. Open," said Thompson. "It's just great to go out and play well in my second major and second pro tournament I've ever played in. So this is very, very cool." Thompson's story is an interesting one.

  He originally attended Tulane University to play golf, but the program was dissolved after Hurricane Katrina ravaged the New Orleans area.

  "I really didn't think about what I was going to do a whole lot. It was such a tragic event that I was so focused on what was going to happen to the school, because I loved New Orleans," said Thompson.

  He transferred to the University of Alabama to continue his pursuit of playing professionally.

  That will happen this summer. Thompson is playing next week at the Travelers Championship on the PGA Tour, then will participate in the Palmer Cup at the end of June.

  "I feel like I belong out here," said Thompson, who believes his first pro event will be sometime in July. "I figured it was an opportunity I couldn't pass up, just because with the FedEx Cup and the Ryder Cup this year, it's going to be very hard to get PGA Tour exemptions and the more experience I get, the better in terms of preparing myself for Q-School. Because inevitably that's where I'm going to end up."DONALD DONE Luke Donald hit his drive on the 15th tee and immediately sough out a medic. The staff wrapped Donald's left wrist, but the Englishman could not continue.

  Donald shook playing partner Carl Pettersson's hand and withdrew.

  He was even on his round and six-over par for the championship when he walked off Torrey Pines.

  OPEN NOTES - Tiger Woods and Rocco Mediate will meet Monday in the first U.S.

  Open playoff since Retief Goosen beat Mark Brooks at Southern Hills in 2001.

  - Woods will be seeking his 14th major championship and third U.S. Open crown. Mediate, 45, will be looking to become the oldest U.S.

  Open champion in history. He has never won a major.

  - The final pairing of Woods and Lee Westwood was told on the third hole to pick up the pace. Woods and Westwood were not officially put on the clock.

  - The low round of the tournament was posted by Heath Slocum on Sunday. His six-under 65 bested Miguel Angel Jimenez's 66 in the second round.

  06/15 23:02:41 ET