After so many close calls, is it closing time?

AUGUSTA, Ga. -- Whenever someone starts to play a round of word association -- PGA style -- two golfers manage to get stuck with the same labels.

Tiger Woods: slump.

Phil Mickelson: majors (as in, he hasn't won any).

Today is the final round of the Masters. Unless Tiger can turn Augusta National into the greatest comeback trail of his career, he's not going to win his fourth green jacket and third in the past four years.

That's some slump for the 28-year-old weekend hack, huh? Jack Nicklaus didn't win his fourth Masters until he was 32, so Tiger has four more years before this alleged slump of his goes from serious to critical.

The network eye that watches the Tiger, CBS, must have been disappointed when its rating magnet shot a third-round 75 yesterday. He is nine shots off the lead, which means a repeat of his greatest 2000 hit -- making up seven shots in seven holes at Pebble Beach -- still might not be enough to win.

Tiger in contention on Sunday speaks for itself. There aren't many stories more compelling than that one. But there is one.

How about Mickelson adding a splash of green to his wardrobe? How about seeing a winning reaction from one of the Tour's most popular players? How about Tiger chasing Phil, and not the other way around?

Mickelson began yesterday in third place, trailing Justin Rose by three shots. When he and Chris DiMarco tee off this afternoon at 2, they'll be leading the tourney with matching 6-under scores.

"If I'm fortunate enough to come through and win that green jacket [today]," Mickelson said yesterday, "you'll be seeing my dumb mug here every year for the rest of my life."

He knows how significant a win would be. He realizes that he and Tiger are running 1-2 when it comes to Tour psychoanalysis.

With Tiger, the theories range from the girlfriend who is supposedly a distraction, to the former swing coach who could help him find his game. When Mickelson is on America's couch, he is interrogated about his near misses. He is the unofficial spokesman for silver medalists and beauty pageant runner-ups.

He has had a fine career. He's always high on the money list. He has played Augusta as well as most players the past five years. He could have been nominated for Husband of the Year when, during the 1999 US Open, he carried a beeper with him at all times. His wife was pregnant with their first child. If the beeper had gone off, Mickelson swore he was going to leave the course and be with his family.

This is a 33-year-old man who can be fun and self-deprecating. He just hasn't won a major. "This is the year" could be his bumper sticker if Manny Ramirez hadn't patented it first.

Mickelson was relaxed yesterday after shooting 69. He said he has removed some of the stress from his game and made it simple again. He is not over-swinging or obsessing over birdies.

"I wish somebody would have told me this earlier," he said. "It's just so much easier."

In many ways, Mickelson's no-major tag is rooted in myth. For example, there haven't been many moments when he has wilted like Rose. Rarely has he gone 67-71-81, as Rose did the previous three days. You won't find a Greg Norman episode on his resume.

He hasn't been a choker. He just hasn't been a closer. If he had gone into this afternoon with sole possession of the lead, it would have been a first. He's never been in the final round of a major without someone to stand next to or someone to chase.

One of the refreshing things about Mickelson is that he doesn't try to pretend that his label is not an issue. He's aware of it. If you catch him in the right mood, he'll even joke about it.

"The anxiety I felt in the past, it's kind of hit-or-miss," he said. "How am I going to drive it today? How are my irons going to be? Am I going to get up? How is the putter going to be?"

He believes Easter at Amen Corner will be just another day.

"Granted, it's the Sunday of the Masters," he explained, "but it's another day of how I've been playing this year. And I don't have that anxiety of, "Is it going to be there or not?"

"It" is going to be there for Mickelson, executives at CBS, and golf fans across the world who truly have been asking for this. On one hand, everyone wants to see Tiger on top. And on the very same hand, everyone wants to see other golfers who aren't afraid to stare down Tiger and produce greatness of their own.

That's nearly impossible to expect. If every golfer sincerely accepts the challenge that Tiger presents, balance in golf is inevitable. Just because Tiger is not today's hero or villain doesn't mean he's in a slump. You do have to factor in improvements from guys like Mickelson, guys who desperately want to exchange the shotgun position for the wheel.

Mickelson can be the lead driver today. He has the advantage of seeing a portion of the field perform before he does. For a change, he doesn't have to worry about golf's superstar becoming the star of this afternoon show.

He was asked about that, too.

Reporter: "How does it feel or look to you to have Tiger nowhere in sight?"

Mickelson: "Well, it doesn't suck. I'll say that."

Michael Holley is a Globe columnist. His e-mail address is holley@globe.com.