SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Phil Mickelson's 5-iron shot sailed long and right on the par-3 seventh, stopping an inch from the fringe and leaving him in danger of losing at least a stroke to playing partner Brandt Snedeker.
Mickelson ended up leaving Snedeker shaking his head and went on to complete a wire-to-wire victory Sunday in the Phoenix Open. Mickelson shot a 4-under 67 to finish at 28-under 256, two strokes off the PGA Tour record of 254 set by Tommy Armour III in the 2003 Texas Open.
Fifty-five feet away, with a mound and a 20-foot swath of fringe between his ball and the hole, Mickelson decided to putt through the taller grass rather than chip over it. He had caddie Jim Mackay remove the flagstick so that it wouldn't deflect the ball if it had too much speed, a move that proved wise when the ball raced into the cup.
• Golf
Gallacher victorious: Stephen Gallacher holed an eagle on No. 16 and won the Dubai Desert Classic, overcoming early jitters to beat playing partner Richard Sterne by three shots.
Gallacher (71) finished with a 22-under total of 266 to take his second European Tour win and the first since 2004.
Webb again: Karrie Webb won her eighth Australian Ladies Masters title at Gold Coast, coming from two strokes behind with birdies on three of her last five holes for a 5-under-par 67 and a two-stroke victory.
Webb finished with a 13-under-par total of 203 in the 54-hole tournament, the season-opening event on the European Ladies Tour.
• Tennis
U.S. moving on: Sam Querrey beat Thiago Alves 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, 7-6 (3) to give the United States a dramatic 3-2 victory over Brazil and a spot in the Davis Cup quarterfinals at Jacksonville Fla.
The U.S. will host Serbia in the next round in Boise, Idaho, April 5-7.
Querrey stepped up after teammate John Isner lost 2-6, 6-4, 6-7 (7), 6-4, 6-3 to Thomaz Bellucci, forcing a deciding fifth match.
Canada upsets Spain: Canada upset a short-handed Spain team at Vancouver, British Columbia to reach the quarterfinals of the Davis Cup.
Milos Raonic defeated Guillermo Garcia-Lopez 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 in the opening reverse singles match to give Canada an insurmountable 3-1 lead.
Spain was missing Rafael Nadal, David Ferrer and Nicolas Almagro because of injuries and fatigue.
• Elsewhere
Lakers nip Pistons: Pau Gasol had 23 points and 10 rebounds, and he contested Detroit's last-second alley-oop attempt to help Los Angeles hold on for a win 98-97 win at Auburn Hills, Mich.
The Lakers blew an 18-point third-quarter lead but went back ahead for good on Kobe Bryant's driving three-point play with 1:09 remaining.
Bryant scored 18 points for the Lakers.
Greg Monroe had 20 points for Detroit. Will Bynum had 18 points and 10 assists.
Texas orders review: University of Texas regents Sunday ordered a review of policies regarding inappropriate relationships between employees and students after a two-hour, private telephone meeting to discuss incidents involving assistant football coach Major Applewhite and former women's head track coach Bev Kearney.
The call between the regents, their legal staff and Chancellor Francisco Cigarroa was scheduled after the disclosure Friday that Applewhite, the Longhorns' offensive coordinator, had been disciplined by the school in 2009 for his conduct with a student during a trip to the Fiesta Bowl.
Kosar creates buzz: Former Cleveland Browns quarterback Bernie Kosar's glowing assessment of a doctor's work to ease Kosar's slurred speech, insomnia and headaches has created a buzz amid rising interest in sports concussions.
Kosar, who publicly discussed his treatment last month, said he has been inundated by calls from NFL players wanting to know more about Dr. Rick Sponaugle of Palm Harbor, Fla.
Sponaugle, who treated the 49-year-old Kosar in December, is a medically trained anesthesiologist who graduated from West Virginia University's School of Medicine in 1982.
Ali fine: Muhammad Ali's daughter knocked down rumors of her father being near death Sunday, saying he was at home watching the Super Bowl.
May May Ali said she talked to her father Sunday morning on the phone and he was fine. She said he was watching the Super Bowl at home in Arizona, wearing a Baltimore Ravens jersey.
The family later posted a photo on Twitter of Ali sitting in a chair wearing a Ray Lewis T-shirt.
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