Just over a month ago, one of the more impressive feats in golf looked to be coming to an end. Phil Mickelson finished runner-up in the Casio World Open in November 1993. It moved him from 60^th to 47^th in Official World Golf Rankings. From that point onwards, he has never left the feted top 50 ranking.

But following a year of disappointing results, Mickelson had dropped to 49^th in the rankings at the end of January. People were beginning to say that time had caught up on the American.

Since then, Mickelson has gone T-5, T-2, T-6 and now ended a four-year winning drought to emerge victorious at the WGC Mexico Championship. He will now be in the top 20 again.

It says a lot about the man. After so many close calls, he has grinded another win out at 47 years old. And not just any old win either. A World Golf Championship, rated just below the majors in prestige, beating the world’s form player Justin Thomas in a playoff.

Mickelson won his first tournament as an amateur in January 1991 at the Northern Telecom Open. He won his first as a professional in February 1993. Justin Thomas would not be born for another two months.

This victory was much deserved. Mickelson may have 43 wins on the PGA Tour and five majors, but he still might be better known as a heroic loser. It did not feel right that Tiger Woods, for example, had a win more recently than Mickelson, given that Tiger went AWOL for four years.

This was a Mickelson that had put in one of the all-time great major performances at the 2016 Open Championship, but managed to come up against the one player even greater that week in Henrik Stenson.  He had been second seven times since his last win, including three times in major championships. Mickelson has remained very relevant in his mid-40s.

His Ryder Cup adversary Tom Watson once said, “A lot of guys who have never choked have never been in the position to do so.” Mickelson, over a quarter of a century, has been as good as anyone at putting himself in a position to win.

That has been great for golf, because Mickelson is truly one of a kind. His swashbuckling style may go against conventional wisdom, sometimes to a comical way, but his body of work justifies the approach. And best of all, it always entertains.

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It was great to see a legend like Phil Mickelson win again on the PGA Tour, and as always it was a thrill to watch him complete the round. But the real injection of excitement into this last night’s WGC Mexico Championship came from the man who would finish in second place, Justin Thomas.

Thomas had an incredible week in Mexico, shooting 62-64 at the weekend only to lose in a playoff. It was capped off by a truly stunning shot on the 72^nd hole at Chapultepac Golf Club. At the time, without the knowledge of what would happen later, it had seemed like as perfect of a shot that you could possibly watch, a wedge holed out from 121 yards for a two-shot lead when he needed it, it was probably going to win the tournament, and that shot would be replayed forever when Justin Thomas is mentioned.

Except with the benefit of hindsight, it turns out that it was not enough to win. It reminded me of the super eagle that Jason Day conjured on the 72^nd hole of the 2016 PGA Championship, two pure two-irons to 10 feet on a 600-yard par 5, then the putt to clinch the deal. Again, if Walker bogeys the final hole, and Jason Day wins, it feels like he is forever remembered for that hole. But instead, it is not remembered in the same way it could be.

Examples like these are littered through golfing history, even among golf’s greatest champions. Tiger Woods’ greatest ever shot may well have been one at the 2002 PGA Championship at Hazeltine, where he faced a bunker shot on a downslope from another fairway. Tiger proceeds to take out a 3-iron and flush it to 15 feet and sink the putt. Yet this shot may not be remembered in the same way as his chip-in at the Masters, or even his bunker shot at the Canadian Open, because Woods finished one shot behind Rich Beem.

The double-salvo of Jack Nicklaus on the 18^th in Duel of the Sun against Tom Watson was as good as he ever played, an 8-iron from a bush to the middle of the green, then a 35-footer straight in for a birdie, but it was to no avail against Watson.

Thomas’ shot in Mexico was one of the moments of the 2018 season so far. Let’s hope that it is remembered that way.