Phil Mickelson's chance at stunning comeback gone with the wind

ST. ANDREWS, Scotland – Phil Mickelson said there was a 62 out there on the ancient Old Course when he began his final round Monday in the 144th British Open. The course was soft from a week’s worth of hard rain in spots and there was nary a breeze coming in off the North Sea.

There’s no longer a 62 out there.

As is expected in these parts, the weather is subject to change – and boy, it sure has. A bit past 1 p.m. local time, temperatures started to plummet, a wee bit of rain started to fall and wind speeds started to accelerate.

Mickelson had moved to within two shots of the lead when he arrived at the Road Hole, the par-4 17th which was playing directly into the increasing wind. But Mickelson drove his ball out of bounds onto a balcony of the Old Course Hotel and his chances for a stunning comeback collapsed.

After six birdies to move to 10 under, Mickelson took a triple-bogey 7 and finished at 7 under with a closing 69. He was five shots out of the lead.

Mickelson, who finished 45 minutes before the final group began play, was among the early starters who knew if they could post a 64 or 65 and move themselves into double-figures under par, they would have a chance to win this championship if the weather disrupted the top of the leaderboard.

“If I could have posted 11 or 12, I would have stayed and probably watched, but with the weather coming in, you just don't know,” Mickelson said. “You add the rain to a 15-, 18 mile-an-hour wind, and it could be a difficult day to break par right now.”

While the front nine was a birdie fest, no one could get better than within two shots of the lead. And like Mickelson, many started to fall back as soon as the weather blew in. Amateur Ollie Schniederjans, for instance, also moved to 10 under before making a double-bogey 6 on the Road Hole.

“There was an opportunity today to shoot 10-, 11-, 12-under par,” Mickelson said. “The conditions were calm and nice. Now that the wind is picking up and the rain is coming in, it's a different golf course.”

PHOTOS: Monday at the British Open