ATLANTA -- Phil Mickelson was pleased to find some form on the final day of the Tour Championship, but he expressed displeasure over the setup at East Lake, saying it was not good preparation for next week's Ryder Cup.
Mickelson, who shot a final-round 66 that included a triple-bogey and a back-nine 29, said the rough was "the worst I've seen in years, and we're not going to have that rough next week'' at Hazeltine National outside of Minneapolis, where the 41st Ryder Cup will take place.
"I'm going to point something out,'' Mickelson said, unprompted. "This is a great example of the disconnect that we have on the U.S. side because the [PGA] Tour doesn't own the Ryder Cup, or doesn't work in conjunction with the PGA of America.''
The Ryder Cup is administered by the PGA of America in the U.S. and the European Tour in Europe.
"The European Tour would never have the setup be so different the week before the Ryder Cup,'' Mickelson said. "If we were in Europe and they were going to set up the course a certain way, the week before they would set it up a certain way. We're not going to have rough like that.
"Why the tour set it up so differently from what we're going to have next week is a lack of communication and working together. It's those kinds of details that we have to sort through as a unit to bring out our best.''
Mickelson, 46, will play in his 11th straight Ryder Cup dating to 1995. He was vocal two years ago at Gleneagles in Scotland, where the U.S. lost for the third straight time. He indirectly criticized U.S. captain Tom Watson and led a movement to make changes to the Ryder Cup process, suggesting that the PGA of America take more player input.
That resulted in the formation of the U.S. Ryder Cup Task Force, a change in qualifying criteria and timing of selections, as well as Davis Love III being named captain for a second time.
Mickelson admitted earlier in the week that his thoughts were more on the Ryder Cup than they were on the season-ending PGA Tour event.
"Well, I've won two Tour Championships, and I've only been a part of two winning Ryder Cups,'' Mickelson said. "I'd kind of like to be a part of a third. So not to diminish this [tournament], but I'd rather win next week. For me, at this stage in my career, it means a little more to me.''
The PGA Tour is under no obligation to set up the course with that in mind. The Tour Championship not only has an $8.5 million purse and is the culmination of a 40-plus event season, but it is also where the FedEx Cup champion is crowned, with the winner receiving a $10 million bonus.
It is true that the recent events on the European Tour in Italy (where seven European Ryder Cup members played) and Germany (where two played) were on relatively benign setups with lots of birdies possible.
Seven U.S. Ryder Cup team members were at East Lake, including Brandt Snedeker, who did not agree with Mickelson.
"That's Phil being Phil,'' Snedeker said, chuckling. "I like rough on this course. It's a different tournament. A different course, different grass, different everything.''
The Ryder Cup teams will arrive in Minnesota on Monday. The event begins Friday morning.