Phil Mickelson

Phil Mickelson will not make his return to the links at next weekend's PGA Championship at Southern Hills Country Club in Tulsa, Oklahoma.   

The PGA Championship announced Friday that Mickelson, who won the event in 2021, has withdrawn from the tournament. It's unclear when the 51-year-old will return to golf.

Mickelson, who was absent from the Masters at Augusta National last month, has not competed since the Saudi International in early February following his comments about the Saudi Arabia-backed Super Golf League. 

In February, author Alan Shipnuck revealed an excerpt from his book, Phil: The Rip-Roaring (and Unauthorized!) Biography of Golf's Most Colorful Superstar, in which Mickelson made controversial comments about the SGL: 

They're scary motherf--kers to get involved with. ... They killed [Washington Post reporter and U.S. resident 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-in-a-lifetime opportunity to reshape how the PGA Tour operates.

Mickelson apologized for the comments in a statement on social media and announced that he would be taking some time away from golf "to prioritize the ones I love most and work on being the man I want to be."

Mickelson made history at the PGA Championship last year when he won at Kiawah Island. He was 50 years old at the time, making him the oldest champion ever in the majors. 

The six-time major winner is just the third PGA champion to not defend his title in the tournament over the last 75 years, joining Tiger Woods, who missed the event in 2008 following knee surgery, and Ben Hogan in 1949, who was recovering after his car was hit by a bus. 

Following the PGA Championship, the next major tournament is the U.S. Open in Brookline, Massachusetts, in June. It's unclear if Mickelson plans to return before then. 

In Greg Norman's eyes, the controversial comments by Phil Mickelson largely derailed the momentum for a proposed alternate golf league financed by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund had built.

"There's no question [Mickelson's comments] hurt," Norman, the CEO of LIV Golf Investments, said, per Mark Schlabach of ESPN. "It hurt a lot of aspects. It hurt the PGA Tour. It hurt us. It hurt the game of golf. It hurt Phil. So yeah, across all fronts. It wasn't just specifically to us. But it definitely created negative momentum against us."

Norman estimated that at least 30 percent of the top 50 players in the PGA Tour had committed to playing in the league prior to the comments, and there were plans in place to launch in February.

Mickelson made the comments to author Alan Shipnuck in which he called the Saudi Arabians "scary motherf--kers" but saw the league as an opportunity to make money and change golf.

"... They killed [Washington Post reporter and U.S. resident Jamal] Khashoggi and have a horrible record on human rights," Mickelson said in the interview. "They execute people over there for being gay. Knowing all of this, why would I even consider it? Because this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to reshape how the PGA Tour operates."

He was heavily criticized and released a statement that said: "It was reckless, I offended people, and I am deeply sorry for my choice of words."        

Lefty has not participated in a tournament since January's Farmers Insurance Open and notably passed on the Masters, which he has won three times in his career.

Augusta National Golf Club chairman Fred Ridley told reporters Mickelson turned down an invitation to participate in the tournament this year via text message.

As for the breakaway league, Norman said it planned on starting a 14-event schedule in late February. That has now been trimmed to eight events with total prize money of $255 million and a season-ending match-play championship at Trump National Doral in Miami in October featuring an additional $50 million in prizes.

"Quite honestly, we were ready to launch on the Tuesday or Wednesday of Genesis," Norman said. "We had enough players in our strength of field, or minimal viable product, ready to come on board. And when all of that happened, everybody got the jitters, and the PGA Tour threatened people with lifetime bans and stuff like that."

He also said Mickelson is welcome to participate in any LIV tournament even after making the comments.             

Phil Mickelson will not participate in this year's Masters Tournament, but it is not because he wasn't invited.

Augusta National Golf Club chairman Fred Ridley told reporters Wednesday that he offered Mickelson an invitation that Lefty turned down via text message:

I would like to say we did not disinvite Phil. Phil is a three-time Masters champion and is invited in that category and many other categories; he's the defending PGA champion.

Phil reached out to me ... and let me know that he did not intend to play. That was by way of a text, and I thanked him for his courtesy in letting me know. I told him that we certainly appreciated that and, you know, told him that I was certainly willing to discuss that further with him if he'd like. He thanked me, and we had a very cordial exchange.

Mickelson has been in the public spotlight since he made comments to author Alan Shipnuck about a potential breakaway league being funded by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund.

ESPN's Mark Schlabach shared those comments from the upcoming book, Phil: The Rip-Roaring (and Unauthorized!) Biography of Golf’s Most Colorful Superstar:

They're scary motherf---ers to get involved with.

... They killed [Washington Post reporter and U.S. resident 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-in-a-lifetime opportunity to reshape how the PGA Tour operates.

Mickelson received plenty of criticism and lost sponsors before releasing a statement that said, in part, "It was reckless, I offended people, and I am deeply sorry for my choice of words."          

He has been away from the game at a professional level since and last played at the Farmers Insurance Open in January. He notably did not participate in the Players Championship and the WGC-Dell Match Play.

Some of Mickelson's greatest triumphs have come at Augusta National as a three-time champion (2004, 2006 and 2010) who has made 29 career starts at the Masters.         

Phil Mickelson will not be participating in this year's Masters Tournament, an Augusta National official confirmed to CBS Sports' Kyle Porter.

That comes after the event website had listed Mickelson among its "past champions not playing" on its list of 2022 invitees for April's major.

Per ESPN's Mark Schlabach, it will mark the first time since 1994 that Mickelson won't participate in the tournament.

As Bob Harig of Sports Illustrated noted, "Mickelson has been the subject of considerable controversy lately due to his comments about the PGA Tour and his flirtations with a rival golf tour led by Greg Norman called the LIV Golf Invitational Series."

In February, comments Mickelson made in November to Alan Shipnuck of The Fire Pit Collective caused an uproar. Talking about his reasons for aligning himself with the Saudi Golf League, Mickelson said he could overlook Saudi Arabia's terrible record of human rights violations and sportswashing if it meant having more leverage over the PGA Tour:

We know they killed [Washington Post reporter and U.S. resident 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-in-a-lifetime opportunity to reshape how the PGA Tour operates. They've been able to get by with manipulative, coercive, strong-arm tactics because we, the players, had no recourse. As nice a guy as [PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan] comes across as, unless you have leverage, he won't do what's right. And the Saudi money has finally given us that leverage. I'm not sure I even want [the SGL] to succeed, but just the idea of it is allowing us to get things done with the [PGA] Tour.

Mickelson later apologized for his remarks:

Rory McIlroy called Mickelson's comments "naive, selfish, egotistical, ignorant," adding that the situation was "just very surprising and disappointing, sad."

McIlroy added in March that Mickelson deserved forgiveness.

"Look, we all make mistakes. We all say things we want to take back. No one is different in that regard," he told reporters. "But we should be allowed to make mistakes, and we should be allowed to ask for forgiveness and for people to forgive us and move on. Hopefully, he comes back at some stage, and he will, and people will welcome him back and be glad that he is back."

Mickelson last played at the Saudi International tournament on Feb. 6. He lost a number of sponsorship deals as a result of his comments, including KPMG and Workday, while Callaway paused its longtime relationship with the golfer.

"I have not talked to Phil since he made his comments and since he said that he was stepping away," Monahan told reporters earlier in March. "I think the ball is in his court. I would welcome a phone call from him. But it’s hard for me to talk about the different scenarios that could play out."

Monahan also declined to answer if Mickelson had been suspended by the PGA Tour after his remarks.

"He stepped away on his own accord, and he's asked for time," he said. "He's been given that time. We don't comment on disciplinary matters, potential matters or actual matters. But every player is accountable for their actions out here."

As Harig noted, the Masters has its own criteria for selecting its participants, so any potential Mickelson suspension would be irrelevant. But it appears that Mickelson's hiatus will be extending through this year's Masters, and possibly beyond.

Rory McIlroy believes Phil Mickelson will return to the PGA Tour at some point. 

Speaking to reporters ahead of this weekend's Arnold Palmer Invitational, McIlroy said "we all make mistakes" and explained why he doesn't think Mickelson's golf career is over:

I think Phil has been a wonderful ambassador for the game of golf, still is a wonderful ambassador for the game of golf. It’s unfortunate that a few comments that he thought he was making in confidence or off the record got out there. This whole situation is unfortunate.

Look, Phil will be back. I think the players want to see him back. He’s done such a wonderful job for the game of golf, and he’s represented the game of golf very, very well for the entirety of his career.

Mickelson announced on Feb. 22 he was going to take "some time away" in the wake of his controversial comments about the Saudi Arabia-backed Super Golf League that was trying to sign several of the top PGA Tour stars. 

Mickelson made his comments about the Saudi league to Alan Shipnuck, who included them in an upcoming unauthorized biography. 

"They're scary motherf--kers to get involved with," Mickelson told Shipnuck in November (h/t ESPN's Mark Schlabach). "... They killed [Washington Post reporter and U.S. resident 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-in-a-lifetime opportunity to reshape how the PGA Tour operates."

The reaction to those comments was swift and strong. Callaway Golf announced it was pausing its sponsorship deal with Mickelson. KPMG, Amstel Light and Workday all ended their deals with Lefty. 

Speaking to GolfWeek's Adam Schupak on Feb. 20, McIlroy called Mickelson's comments "naive, selfish, egotistical, ignorant."

The Saudi Arabian government has been accused of sportswashing in an attempt to improve its standing and obscure its history of poor human rights. 

Per human rights organization Grant Liberty (h/t Ruth Michaelson of The Guardian), Saudi Arabia has spent "at least" $1.5 billion to bring high-profile sporting events to the country in recent years. 

Mickelson most recently played at the Farmers Insurance Open in January. He missed the cut with a score of three over par. There is no indication at this point when the 51-year-old might play in a PGA Tour event again.     

Phil Mickelson will no longer serve as the host for the American Express PGA Tour event in 2023 after his comments regarding the Saudi Arabia-backed Super Golf League.

The PGA Tour revealed the news to Larry Bohannan of the Palm Springs Desert Sun, who also wrote that the Mickelson Foundation will no longer be part of the event either.

Mickelson's remarks occurred during a November interview with Alan Shipnuck for his upcoming biography, Phil: The Rip-Roaring (and Unauthorized!) Biography of Golf's Most Colorful Superstar.

However, the comments didn't come to light until Shipnuck released the Q-and-A in advance last week.

The most controversial remarks included Mickelson's explaining why he considered the Super Golf League despite Saudi human rights violations.

In essence, Mickelson said his issues with the PGA Tour (he's notably criticized it for what he calls "obnoxious greed") trump any concerns he has about the human rights record:

We know they killed [Washington Post reporter and U.S. resident 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-in-a-lifetime opportunity to reshape how the PGA Tour operates. They've been able to get by with manipulative, coercive, strong-arm tactics because we, the players, had no recourse.

Backlash ensued, with some fellow star golfers (e.g., Justin Thomas, Rory McIlroy) expressing dismay and disappointment.

Mickelson eventually apologized for the remarks and said he's stepping away from golf to "prioritize the ones I love most and work on being the man I want to be."

Following his remarks, Callaway paused its relationship with Mickelson, and Workday severed ties with the six-time major winner entirely. KPMG and Amstel Light also broke off from Mickelson.

Callaway Golf has paused its partnership with Phil Mickelson following his comments about the Saudi Arabia-backed Super Golf League, it announced Friday. 

Workday, KPMG and Heineken/Amstel are among the companies to have ended their relationship with Mickelson entirely, according to Joel Beall of Golf Digest. It's unclear if Callaway has plans to completely drop Mickelson in the future. 

Mickelson recently voiced his opinion about the Super Golf League, making controversial comments, to author Alan Shipnuck, who posted an excerpt from his upcoming book, Phil: The Rip-Roaring (and Unauthorized!) Biography of Golf's Most Colorful Superstar, per ESPN's Mark Schlabach:

They're scary motherf--kers to get involved with. ... They killed [Washington Post reporter and U.S. resident Jamal] Khashoggi and have a horrible record on human rights," Mickelson continued, in an interview that Shipnuck said took place in November. "They execute people over there for being gay. Knowing all of this, why would I even consider it? Because this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to reshape how the PGA Tour operates.

Mickelson recently apologized for those comments in a Twitter post:

Mickelson has been criticized by many of his peers on the PGA Tour, including Rory McIlroy, who told Schlabach:

I don't want to kick someone while he's down obviously, but I thought [Mickelson's comments] were naive, selfish, egotistical, ignorant. A lot of words to describe that interaction he had with Shipnuck. It was just very surprising and disappointing. Sad. I'm sure he's sitting at home sort of rethinking his position and where he goes from here.

The Super Golf League was trying to poach several of the PGA Tour's biggest stars in recent weeks. However, many of those stars have recently denounced any interest in joining the Saudi-backed league. Bryson DeChambeau, Tiger Woods, Dustin Johnson and Jon Rahm have all reiterated their commitment to the PGA Tour in recent weeks. 

After the current Honda Classic comes to an end, the next PGA Tour event is the Arnold Palmer Invitational.  

Phil Mickelson lost yet another sponsorship this week in the wake of controversial comments he made about Saudi Arabia and its proposed golf league.

According to Michael McCarthy of Front Office Sports, Heineken USA announced Wednesday that it was ending Mickelson's Amstel Light sponsorship, adding, "We wish all the best."

McCarthy noted that Amstel Light joined KPMG as brands that have moved on from Mickelson recently.

Mickelson came under fire last week when author Alan Shipnuck released an excerpt from his upcoming biography of the golfer entitled "Phil: The Rip-Roaring (and Unauthorized!) Biography of Golf's Most Colorful Superstar."

Per ESPN's Mark Schlabach, Mickelson expressed a willingness to negotiate with Saudi Arabian officials regarding the golf league and turn a blind eye toward the country's human rights violations in an effort to press the PGA Tour into making improvements.

Mickelson said the following while speaking to Shipnuck in November:

"They're scary motherf--kers to get involved with. ... They killed [Washington Post reporter and U.S. resident 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-in-a-lifetime opportunity to reshape how the PGA Tour operates."

On Tuesday, Mickelson released a lengthy statement on the matter on Twitter and apologized for his comments:

The 51-year-old also suggested things were taken out of context to some degree and that Shipnuck was supposed to keep his comments off the record.

Shipnuck later responded, saying it was "completely false" that their conversation was off the record.

Mickelson told Shipnuck he knew "20 guys" who wanted to be part of the Saudi Super Golf League, and he cautioned that the league could take off if "the Tour doesn't do the right thing."

The Super Golf League is backed by the Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund and led by two-time Open Championship winner Greg Norman, and Kevin Garside of INews.co.uk reported top players had been offered between $30 million and and $50 million to play on the proposed tour.

Mickelson, a six-time major winner, would have been an obvious target for the league, but many players have pledged allegiance to the PGA Tour since the Saudi-backed proposal.

Four-time major winner Rory McIlroy described the idea as "dead in the water" on Sunday.

Per Schlabach, an anonymous PGA Tour player said the Saudi league planned to hold 14 events in Asia, Europe, the Middle East and the United States with $20 million purses.

Mickelson has yet to make a public commitment to either the PGA Tour or the Saudi league moving forward.

Phil Mickelson is no longer sponsored by KPMG after his recent comments regarding Saudi Arabia.

"KPMG U.S. and Phil Mickelson have mutually agreed to end our sponsorship effective immediately. We wish him the best," the organization said in a statement, via Kendall Baker of Axios.

Speaking about the Saudi-backed Super Golf League, Mickelson indicated to biographer Alan Shipnuck that he might be willing to overlook human rights issues in order to gain "leverage" on the PGA Tour.

"We know they killed [Washington Post reporter and U.S. resident 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-in-a-lifetime opportunity to reshape how the PGA Tour operates," Mickelson said, via the Fire Pit Collective.

Mickelson apologized on Tuesday, saying the comments were intended to be off the record:

The 51-year-old said in the post he "desperately [needs] some time away."

Mickelson was heavily criticized for his initial comments, which also included calling the PGA Tour a "dictatorship."

Rory McIlroy called Mickelson's interview "naive, selfish, egotistical, ignorant."

It could lead to significant consequences for a player who generates a lot of income through endorsements:

According to Shipnuck, Workday has chosen not to renew Mickelson's contract when it expires ahead of the Masters. KPMG also reportedly contacted Callaway before making its decision on Mickelson.

Mickelson uses Callaway clubs and currently has a lifetime contract with the company.