LIV Golf's Phil Mickelson 'ready to go on a tear' after climbing up Masters 2023 leaderboard

The scoring conditions at the second day of the 2023 Masters have not ben nearly as favorable as those that came on the first day of the major. As a result, few players have been able to shoot low rounds, with leader Brooks Koepka's 5-under round representing the best of the day so far.

That said, another familiar name was able to log a strong round in the major. He shot a 3-under 69 to gradually climb the Masters leaderboard and guarantee that he would at least make the cut.

That would be Phil Mickelson.

Mickelson, 52, has largely struggled while playing on the LIV Golf tour in 2023. He has finished no better than T-27th in the Saudi-backed start-up's 48-man fields and his best three-round total in the tournament was the 1-under he shot at LIV Golf Tucson in March.

LIVE: Updates, highlights, scores, results from Round 2 of the 2023 Masters

But at the Masters, Mickelson has kicked his game into a different gear. And as he explained after his second round, he believes that this is a sign of things to come.

"I'm going to go on a tear pretty soon," Mickelson said when asked about his second-round 69, per LIV Golf. "You wouldn't think it. You look at the scores. But I've been playing exactly how I played yesterday, hitting the ball great, turning 65s, 66s into 77s. I'm ready to go on a tear."

It's easy to understand why Mickelson would be gaining confidence. He is striking the ball well at Augusta National, and his 4-under through two rounds has placed him just outside the top 10 for the tournament.

Perhaps Mickelson's familiarity with Augusta is helping him. After all, he is making his 30th appearance at the Masters and has won the event three times before. And the LIV Golf courses he was playing on in Mayakoba, Tuscon and Orlando haven't exactly staples of his playing regimen.

Mickelson's form and history at Augusta should give him a chance to challenge for a top-10 spot at the 2023 Masters — provided that he can keep up his strong play over the four-day tournament. Winning the event, however, may be difficult, as his fellow LIV Golf participant Brooks Koepka holds an eight-shot lead over Mickelson after Friday's play.

"You knew he was going to have a good week," Mickelson said of Koepka's Masters performance Friday while referencing the 32-year-old's win at LIV Golf Orlando.

MORE: Tracking the performance of LIV Golf players at the 2023 Masters

Phil Mickelson's Masters history

Below is a look at Mickelson's history at the Masters since his debut at the event as an amateur in 1991.