Mickelson and Woods illustrate two sides of golfing coin

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Florida – Rarely has the contrast between golf as an enjoyable game and torturous frustration been as evident in two players as in the appearances of Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods at the Players Championship on Tuesday.

Mickelson, a four-time major winner fresh from his induction into the World Golf Hall of Fame, sat casually with reporters ahead of Thursday’s opening round and chatted about how much he loves the game.

But Woods, who missed a cut for only the eighth time in a PGA Tour event last week, looked far from happy discussing the seemingly endless “process” of working on the fourth swing change of his professional career.

This story is for NewsDay subscribers.