HAVEN, Wis. - Phil Mickelson is confident that someone will again dominate the majors the way Jack Nicklaus did 30 years ago and Tiger Woods has more recently.

Mickelson need only look in the mirror to spot one of the candidates.

If not for a three-putt from 5 feet on the 71st hole in the U.S. Open and a missed 4-footer on the back nine in the final round at Royal Troon last month, Mickelson might be teeing it up Thursday in the PGA Championship with a chance to grab the final leg of the Grand Slam.

"I'm three shots away from having the Grand Slam," he said. "Certainly, I think about that. I don't dwell on it."

Whistling Straits is enough to grab all his attention.

The PGA Championship gets under way Thursday on the longest (7,514 yards) and newest (6 years old) course in the modern era ever used for a major championship, and it is somewhat of a mystery.

No one knows what to expect on a course that is intimidating at first sight, and never gets easy. Players might get a better idea in the first round, although Mickelson played in the afternoon and had to wait his turn.

Given his career - 0-for-42 as a professional in the majors until the Masters - Mickelson doesn't mind waiting.

The lefty who once was the best golfer never to win a major now seems to do everything right in the majors.

It all started with that 18-foot putt that curled into the side of the cup on the 18th green at Augusta in April. He followed up the Masters win with a runner-up finish to Retief Goosen in the U.S. Open and third place in the British Open, where he had never finished in the top 10.

"I think it would have been quite a bit tougher, absolutely, having those close chances, having the lead in the final nine and not winning ... had I not won the Masters," Mickelson said.

His 1-2-3 finishes in the majors has sent his stock and confidence soaring. He also won the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic and is second on the money list with more than $5 million.

"I'm certainly more confident in my preparation for the majors now that I seem to have found a process that has been effective," he said.

He was asked this week if he thought there would ever be another dominant player in the majors.

"I certainly I would not rule it out," he said. "In fact, I would expect it to happen again."

Mickelson's game plan includes spending hours plotting how to play certain holes, which ones to lay up on, which ones to attack.He's also embraced the idea that length isn't everything. A controlled fade off the tee has helped him hit more fairways and he no longer reaches for the driver on every hole.But he might not have a choice this week.Whistling Straits promises to test the will and wisdom of the best players in the world. The finishing hole, a par 4 at 500 yards, could be a three-shot hole if the wind is strong and into the players."Certainly, 18 is not a par 4, so you can't get hung up on, `I have to make four there every day or I won't win the tournament,'" Davis Love III said.Also part of the mix are hundreds of bunkers, massive undulating greens, narrow winding fairways, fescue-filled rough and, above all, the treacherous winds blowing off Lake Michigan.Wind and intermittent rain hit the course Wednesday, but things were expected to improve through the remainder of the week, with highs in the 70s and 80s by the weekend.What's more, no one has ever played a competitive round at the links-style course, so no one is sure what to expect."I think it adds certainly to the suspense," Love said. "It might be good for the experienced players because they say, hey, we don't know what's going to happen, so we are just going to go play and not have any target score or expectations in our head."This is the final major of the season, aptly named "Glory's Last Shot."It's also Tiger Woods' last chance to snap his slump in majors - he's winless in the last nine - and protect his No. 1 ranking. Another also-ran finish in a major - his best finish this year was a tie for ninth in the British Open - also could end Woods' streak of five straight player of the year titles.Vijay Singh is looking for his fifth win of the season, but he is 0-for-18 in the majors since winning the 2000 Masters.Then there's Ernie Els. He's made more than $4 million this year, but has been twice a bridesmaid in the majors. He finished second to Mickelson in the Masters and lost the British Open in a playoff to Todd Hamilton.A win here would likely push the Big Easy past Tiger in the world rankings.For players such as Jerry Kelly, Stewart Cink, Scott Verplank and Chris DiMarco, the PGA is their final shot to qualify for the U.S. Ryder Cup team.The four are on the bubble and a good showing would probably get them one of the 10 automatic spots on the team.Mickelson, who will be playing on his fifth Ryder Cup team, said he does not dwell on how close he came this year to sweeping the majors, but it's a thought that visits from time to time."Oh absolutely," he said. "I'm three shots away from having the Grand Slam. Certainly I think about that. I've been able to do it well this year, but had I been able to do it just a little bit better, it could have been an incredible year."It might still be.