Phil Mickelson just dropped some fascinating insider lefty knowledge about Augusta National

When he gets going about the intricacies of the game of golf, there’s nobody better the listen to than Phil Mickelson.

And when he gets going about Augusta National—a place where Mickelson has won three green jackets, and finished inside the top 5 in 40 percent of his appearences—you know he’s about to drop some serious knowledge.

That’s exactly what happened during Lefty’s pre-tournament press conference ahead of this week’s LIV Golf: Miami event.

Asked by media in attendance how he shares his knowledge with other players at places like Augusta National, Mickelson explained in subtle but important ways how the course plays differently for left-handers. He gave an interesting answer while explaining the question. “There are little nuances that allow Bubba and I to play differently than John, and we can be aggressive in certain places that need a little more attention, and vice versa.

(We talk more about this in our latest Game Plan video, which you can watch here.)

Interestingly, one of the examples that Phil gave is that when he hits the 10th green from a bunker, left-handed batters are punished more than right-handed batters. “When the pin is to the right, when it’s in front, when it’s to the right, when it’s further back, right?” If you go into that bunker and you’re right-handed, If a guy comes in, faces his sand wedge open and hits a high, soft shot with a little more spin, he’ll hit the slope again, check and go down quickly and quietly. simply. I saw during training how players set it up on two legs without any problems. But if you’re left-handed, when you step into that bunker and open the face, the ball spins and moves from right to left toward the green, and it doesn’t stop. . The best shot I can do is probably 8 feet, 10 feet is a pretty good shot. Therefore, this bunker is much more dangerous for me than for a right-handed person.

But as Phil explains, lefties have a huge advantage on the crucial 12th hole.

“Another example is No. 12, he comes into our shots left-handed. So, if you aim for the bunker and pull back a little, it will last longer, right? And we can return to the last point. When it gets out of the way, it flies to the left while catching the green. So if you get a total of 12, you’re aggressive. Bubba and I think the same way and look for where the pin is, but if you’re right-handed you have to be a little more careful when it’s hot because the pin is on the opposite side of the spread of the shot. ”

This is a fascinating design nuance at Augusta National, and the more you study it, the more you learn.