Charlie, my impression is Phil is a big guy whose body mass may help him absorb the .458 Win recoil better than a normal man. However, he may be a normal guy who is tougher than nails and can take the punishment!
Body mass does not necessarily help recoil resistance. In fact, some theorize that less body mass allows the shooter to "roll" more easily with recoil, thus reducing pain. Elmer Keith is one possible example, but another might be Coni Brooks, who with her husband Randy owned/ran Barnes Bullets for years until retiring 14 years ago.
Coni isn't much over five feet tall, and trim. She used the .338 Winchester Magnum as her big game rifle for anything smaller than Cape buffalo for many years, with notable success. (For the really big stuff she preferred a large-caliber double rifle, a .500 of some sort if I recall correctly.)
