Mickelson bears brunt of LIV criticism
BROOKLINE, Mass. — Phil Mickelson was one of the few golfers on-site not to hit a single shot Monday at The Country Club.
Mickelson didn’t hit the practice range, work on his putting or play any practice holes for this week’s U.S. Open. He came on campus for his 1 p.m. press conference, took 25 minutes of questions then immediately left in his comped Lexus. It seemed as if Mickelson wasn’t quite ready to interact with the public. He got in his practice time Sunday before the crowds were allowed through the gates.
He also was the only golfer without any logos on his clothing. He no longer is allowed to wear his familiar KPMG hat. The Workday logo on his black polo has been replaced by a silhouette of him jumping in celebration after winning the Masters. It’s not clear whether he is still playing Callaway balls. At an event with endless corporate branding, Mickelson repped nothing but himself.
Mickelson, a six-time major winner and longtime fan favorite, is now a pariah to many in the golf world. For four months he went underground after making controversial comments about the PGA Tour, the LIV Golf tour and the history of human rights abuses by the Saudi royal family that finances the LIV tour.
His sponsors dropped him. The PGA Tour suspended him and other LIV golfers indefinitely. He put his career on hold and sought therapy for, among other things, his gambling habit. This week’s U.S. Open is Mickelson’s first tournament on U.S. soil since the end of January.
Mickelson was bombarded with questions about the Saudis and 9/11 victims Monday, his first U.S. press conference since the controversy ignited. He didn’t exactly try to win back his fans.
“I know that … many people have strong opinions, emotions about my choice to go forward with LIV Golf,” he said. “I understand and I respect that.”
Mickelson is one of 14 participants in the U.S. Open who has joined the LIV tour. The list includes stars such as Dustin Johnson, Bryson DeChambeau, and Patrick Reed. The first LIV event was last weekend outside of London and Mickelson finished tied for 33rd out of 48 golfers after shooting plus-10.
The USGA, which runs the U.S. Open, allowed Mickelson and any of the other suspended players to participate. The major is not part of the PGA Tour.
Yet Mickelson is almost singularly bearing the brunt of the controversy surrounding LIV and the Saudis, who have been accused of financing a golf tour to “sportswash” their record with human rights.
Johnson, a two-time major winner, still was repping Adidas and TaylorMade at the driving range. Kevin Na, another LIV defector, is still covered in logos from Callaway, MGM Resorts, and WAAC, a Korean clothing company.
No other LIV golfers stood at the podium Monday to take 25 minutes of haymakers from reporters. No other golfer is having to answer about 9/11.
Mickelson is taking this burden alone.
“I would say to everyone that has lost loved ones, lost friends on 9/11, that I have deep, deep empathy for them,” Mickelson said. “I can’t emphasize that enough.”
Perhaps Mickelson has become the face of the controversy because he’s the second-biggest star in golf behind Tiger Woods. He is believed to be LIV’s most expensive acquisition, signing on for a reported $200 million.
Perhaps it’s also because Mickelson was first in the clubhouse, so to speak, with controversial comments about LIV. His comments that were published in February were grossly insensitive: “We know they killed (Washington Post reporter Jamal) Khashoggi and have a horrible record on human rights. They execute people over there for being gay. Knowing all of this, why would I even consider it? Because this is a once-ina-lifetime opportunity to reshape how the PGA Tour operates.”
Mickelson instantly became the face of greed.
“Everybody has a price,” Justin Thomas, one of the most vocal pro-PGA Tour voices, said Monday. “It’s astronomical money that they’re throwing at people.”
Had Mickelson just kept quiet, or simply acknowledged that joining LIV was all about the money, he probably would have a few sponsors left, like Johnson, Na and other LIV golfers.
As pointed out by a reporter in Mickelson’s press conference, the Saudis are involved in boxing, horse racing, motor sports and Premier League soccer. Even President Joe Biden is going to Saudi Arabia next month to do business.
Mickelson, though, is singularly taking heat for it. But he’s not complaining publicly.
“That’s not necessarily for me to say,” Mickelson said. “I think the important thing is that everyone is entitled to their opinion. I understand that it brings out a lot of strong emotions for a lot of people and I respect the way they may or may not feel about it.”
It’s unknown how the Boston gallery will treat Mickelson this week. He didn’t subject himself to the public Monday, but he will play a practice round with Na and Jon Rahm on Tuesday. When the championship begins Thursday, Mickelson will be paired for the first two rounds with Shane Lowry and Louis Oosthuizen, another LIV golfer.
Mickelson normally would be a crowd favorite. But the notoriously raucous Boston crowd could go either way with him.
“I predict that, if Phil’s missing the cut, like on Friday afternoon or something, it can get pretty rough on him,” NBC commentator Paul Azinger said.
The U.S. Open is tough enough on Mickelson. With its 6 inches of rough and premium on accuracy, it is the one major that has eluded him in his 30-year career. Mickelson, who turns 52 this week, hasn’t finished higher than 48th in seven years.
This week at The Country Club should be even tougher, as the entire golf world hounds him about a decision that more than a dozen other golfers also made.
“I don’t necessarily agree with everything he’s ever done, that’s for sure,” Azinger said. “If he does get in contention, it would be a miracle — a minor miracle that that guy could get in contention with all that’s been going on.”