The Press Association

The European Tour's attempt to challenge the supremacy of its American equivalent could be boosted by the participation of world number two Phil Mickelson at some point in the future.

PGATOUR.com

Q. Obviously not the finish that you were looking for, but Freddie called those conditions just brutal out there. Would you agree with that?

PHIL MICKELSON: It was a tough day today. But some guys shot under par, some guys played some great rounds. Sergio shot under par and played a great round, and Paul hung tough, played a great round. It was out there. You could still score, even as tough as it was. You could still make some birdies.

By Gary Smits, The Florida Times-Union

Phil Mickelson left some shots on the TPC Sawgrass Players Stadium Course in Thursday's first round, but not enough to hurt his chances of defending his 2007 Players Championship.

By Helen Ross, PGATOUR.com

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. -- Other players might have gotten frustrated. They might have let those back-to-back bogeys lead to even more dropped shots.

Phil Mickelson, though, responded to bogeys at Nos. 18 and 1 -- his ninth and 10th holes of the day -- with a two-putt birdie at the par-5 second. The defending champion also rolled in a 4-footer for birdie at the ninth to finish off a solid 70 in the first round of THE PLAYERS Championship.

By Steve DiMeglio, USA Today

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. — When it comes to the decade-long debate about the status of The Players Championship, British Open winner Padraig Harrington thinks the tournament will one day be considered as a (fifth) major championship.