Phil Mickelson confirms LIV participation

Phil Mickelson (right) (Craig O'Neal, Wikimedia Commons)

According to Bob Harig of Sports Illustrated on Monday, men’s golf icon Phil Mickelson plans to join the LIV Golf Invitational Series, which will begin Thursday in London, England. There are eight events on the LIV schedule in 2022, with $255 million up for grabs. The tournaments have no cuts, and will have 48 players participating.

However the series has generated controversy as it is becoming a rival to the PGA Tour. In fact, the PGA Tour is not releasing its players to the events, which are financed by the state-owned investment fund in Saudi Arabia. Mickelson is joining a star-studded field in the LIV Golf Invitational Series, which includes Sergio Garcia, Lee Westwood, and Dustin Johnson.

So the big question now is, what happens to Mickelson, who has a lifetime membership on the PGA Tour? According to Steve DiMeglio of Golfweek, he earned that membership by winning 20 times on the PGA Tour and spending 15 years on the PGA Tour. Mickelson has stated he has no intention of resigning his PGA Tour membership, and plans to play all four majors.

Now it is up to the PGA Tour to provide clarity to the situation. Will they continue to play hardball or play softball, and allow its golf stars to participate on both tours or will they ban players who jump ship? The ball is in the PGA Tour’s court at this time. Mickelson hopes to do both, it appears. For how long is anyone’s guess, and it will also be interesting what PGA Tour events he will try to enter.

From a golfing perspective, Mickelson is currently ranked 72nd in the world. His last PGA Tour event he participated in was the Farmers Insurance Open in January in his native city of San Diego, where he missed the cut.

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