Pavlova's Desert: Phil Tells A Spectacular Champions Dinner Story

A gem from Tuesday’s pre-2021 Masters press conference:

Q. Fast-forwarding to tonight's Champions Dinner, how are we feeling about the pigs in a blanket? Are you a fan, or what's up?

PHIL MICKELSON: I'm always open. I've tried a lot of different cuisine over the years. I think it's pretty cool. I remember -- I'll share with you a little funny story from Adam Scott's victory.

He had this wonderful meal, Australian-themed, and out comes dessert, and it's pavlova. It's meringue with some fruit and so forth. And I said, no -- now, you can't Google this stuff because there's no cell phones allowed, right. I said, oh, pavlova, that's inspired by the great Russian ballerina Anna Pavlova who was touring through New Zealand, Australia, and an Australian chef so inspired by her beautiful movement and tutu, she ended up -- he made a dessert after her.

Chairman Payne looked at me like what kind of stuff are you spewing here, you know.

And, no, no, this is true. Zach Johnson looks at me, says, "I've got a hundred dollars that says that's not right."

So everybody is calling me out on my BS. And a lot of times, I am BSing. However, however, my daughter was a dancer, and she wrote a biography on Anna Pavlova, and I made 32 pavlovas for her class when she was a little girl, and I knew this. And I ended up, you know, being right, which is not often, but I was right on that particular moment.

Some of these moments that go down in Champions Dinner are special, and that was cuisine inspired.