Butch Harmon: Phil Mickelson will overtake Tiger for No.1

"Tiger's got a big lead as No. 1 in the world, so it'll take a couple of years, but I think he can and I think he will actually (catch Woods)," said Harmon, "He's going to have to really work hard and change a lot more things, but he's willing to do that and wants to do it. He has the desire to try and rival Tiger."

"I would say they're very similar to be honest with you. Both have a tremendous amount of natural talent. They both have unbelievable short games. I think Tiger may be a little better putter under pressure, but Phil's short game around the green is a little bit better than Tiger's. In general, they're similar." (More)

Butch Harmon back (and basks) in the limelight

After being fired by Tiger Woods unceremoniously, Butch Harmon sputtered around looking from the outside in. He even went on NBC to criticize Tiger's new swing changes under Hank Haney, and paid for it dearly after Tiger eventually won 2 more majors and went on a winning streak that gave Lord Byron's a run for his money.

To put it bluntly, Harmon became something of a has-been (known better as Tiger's fired coach), teaching a whole cadre of students (Scott, Couples, Clarke, Olazabal, Leonard, Natalie Gulbis, and others) none of whom had one one-millionth of Tiger's star power. And, except for Adam Scott, none had a realistic chance of challenging Tiger (and Adam Scott has yet to live up to his potential, nor has Natalie Gulbis lived up to hers but she's on the LPGA tour).

Well, now, Butch is back. And you know how much Butch loves it. Yesterday, he gave Phil Mickelson a big bear hug as Phil walked to the scorer's tent. Phil repaid Butch by giving him the 18th flag, which Phil signed: "Butch: the 1st of many." Should Tiger worry? Well, maybe not worry, but I'm sure Tiger took notice. The re-emergence of Mickelson is good for game, as is the return of Butch Harmon. Let the competition begin.

Butch Harmon: Adam Scott, not Phil Mickelson, is his No.1 student, but Phil has "very good" chance of catching Tiger

Butch Harmon may have the biggest ego of any swing coach. He's spoken publicly for the first time about his new pupil Phil Mickelson.

First, he's made clear that Phil Mickelson is not his main horse, Adam Scott is. “I’m not Rick Smith. I’m not going to spend 24/7 time with Phil. When he needs help I’ll be there with him. ...But if you’re asking me who’s at the top of the totem pole, Adam Scott is my main client. And I’ve explained that to Phil.”

But Butch thinks he can get Mickelson to contend with Tiger Woods for the No. 1 ranking in a few years. “The first priority is to get Phil to drive the ball in the fairway more consistently and to control the ball through the air,” Harmon said. “You will definitely see a different-looking swing from Phil Mickelson in Dallas this week. ...It’s going to be very difficult to challenge Tiger Woods this year for No. 1 because Tiger has such a big lead in the points. But Phil has the talent and the desire and he has finally realized that he had to make changes. I think he has a very good chance of catching Tiger in the next couple of years.” (More here)