Flying over the gridlock

Golfer Phil Mickelsen has a way of beating Westside traffic for the Nissan Open. He's chartering a plane each day from near his home Rancho Santa Fe to Santa Monica Airport. Reports Register sports columnist Randy Youngman:

If you want to take a "flyer" on who might win the Nissan Open this weekend at Riviera County Club, Phil Mickelson is a good pick, for more than one reason. Not only is Mickelson coming off an impressive five-stroke victory in last week's Pebble Beach National Pro-Am, he has decided to commute daily from his home in San Diego County, between rounds of the tournament, in his own private jet. And he's flying it.

Youngman is skepitcal at the ease of Mickelson's high-flying commute:

"It's only about an hour commute door to door. It's not bad at all," [Mickelson said.] I'm not buying the one-hour estimate, considering Mickelson has to be picked up at his home in Rancho Santa Fe, dropped off at a nearby commuter airport and, after the 40-minute flight to Santa Monica Airport, transported again to nearby Riviera. But I'm sure it beats the traffic on the Southern California freeways. For example, fellow tour pro Kevin Na said it took him 1hour, 40 minutes to drive from the course to Koreatown for dinner Tuesday night in downtown Los Angeles. "The traffic is brutal out here," Na said Wednesday. "Maybe that's why Tiger's not playing."