Mickelson Leads Doral Golf Tourney

Phil Mickelson's scores from Doral over the past two years clearly suggested that the redesigned Blue Monster wasn't completely to his liking.

He had to relearn a course that he played for more than 20 years and indicated Thursday that he finally has the new Doral figured out.

Mickelson shot a 5-under 67 on Thursday in the opening round of the Cadillac Championship, the first World Golf Championships event of the year. Seeking his first win since the British Open in 2013, Mickelson made seven birdies and finished the day one shot back of leaders Scott Piercy and Marcus Fraser.

"There is a bit of a learning curve on some of the contours and where you have to go and where you want to go and the best place to be," Mickelson said. "It's not like I came in here weeks before and mapped it out like a major. You're here only the week of. But this is our third year here now, and it continues to get better each year."