Rose wins Open, but Mickelson is the story

England's Justin Rose won the U.S. Open Sunday by two strokes, but it's the man who tied Jason Day for second place that most people on this side of the Atlantic Ocean will likely identify with.

That would be Phil Mickelson, who placed second at the Open for the sixth time in his career and has yet to win the event.

Rose was steady on the final day, as he shot an even-par 70 to finish 1-over-par for the tournament, while Mickelson faltered with double bogeys on No. 3 and No. 5 to fall out of first place. Mickelson rallied to tie Rose and Hunter Mahan before settling for a bogey on No. 15. Mickelson never fully recovered after that.

A lot of people badly wanted to see Mickelson break his winless streak at the U.S. Open because they like him a lot. They see him as an approachable superstar -- the kind of guy you'd love to have a beer with after a round of golf and shoot the breeze. They see him as the family man who attended his daughter's eighth grade graduation ceremony before flying to Philadelphia and competing on short rest. When you mention Phil Mickelson's name to a golf fan, they'll likely smile and tell you how much they like him -- unlike Tiger Woods, who seems cold and calculating to some people, or Sergio Garcia, whose habits of putting his foot in his mouth don't help the fact that he has yet to live up to the hype surrounding him.

Average American golf fans aren't likely to fawn over Rose, either. To them, he'll likely be known as the guy who became the first British golfer to win the Open since 1970. They won't know much more than that, nor will they care unless Rose wins several more majors.

Mickelson, though, is someone Americans identify with because of who he is as a person and how he handles adversity. They admire how he carries himself in good times (winning two Masters) and bad times (his wife and his mother battling cancer in the same year), and as a result, they want nothing but the best for him.

It's a shame Mickelson wound up finishing tied for second place at the U.S. Open, but you get the sense that he'll bounce back and contend for the title again next year. That's his way, and that's the reason why he is a fan favorite.