STERLING, Va — Phil Mickelson gives the thumbs up after putting out on the 18th green during day two of the LIV Golf Invitational – DC at Trump National Golf Club on May 27, 2023. | Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images
The six-time major winner was one of the original players to break away from the PGA and support LIV Golf and now gets the last laugh.
When Tuesday’s news dropped of the PGA Tour merging with LIV Golf, nobody had a bigger thrill on Twitter than six-time major winner Phil Mickelson.
“Awesome day today,” Mickelson said as he re-tweeted a CNBC tweet that shared the breaking news.
For the past few weeks, Mickelson has gotten into numerous discussions on Twitter over the rivalry between the Saudi-backed LIV Golf Tour and the PGA Tour.
Mickelson chirped at Golf Channel’s Brandel Chamblee and Eamon Lynch as both veteran journalists fired back.
The 2021 PGA Champion even attacked Rory McIlroy, the four-time major winner from Northern Ireland and vehement PGA Tour supporter.
The left-hander has had quite the run over the past few years, as he became the oldest player to win a major in 2021.
In 2022, Mickelson took a leave of absence to focus on his game and mental state following his remarks to Alan Shipnuck on the new Saudi-backed tour.
Shipnuck proceeded to publish a biography on Mickelson.
Consequently, Mickelson did not play at Augusta National, nor did he defend his PGA Championship title at Southern Hills last year. He instead made his major debut at the Country Club at Brookline for the 2022 U.S. Open.
The week before that U.S. Open, LIV Golf held its first event outside of London at Centurion Golf Club. Mickelson participated—his first professional appearance in 2022.
A year later, the LIV Golf Tour and PGA Tour are now one.
“I want to re-shape how the PGA Tour operates,” Mickelson said to Shipnuck in 2022.
The six-time major winner has accomplished that, as men’s professional golf has changed forever.
Mickelson gets the last laugh a week before the 2023 U.S. Open.
