Phil Mickelson’s LIV Golf comments contained cheeky message to PGA Tour rivals

Phil Mickelson admitted he was “happy” for his PGA Tour rivals, after the six-time major champion had his say on the ever-changing landscape of men’s professional golf with a pointed message to players he left behind.

Mickelson became the mark to leave the PGA Tour for LIV Golf in 2022, topping a list of star players after pledging his support for the Saudi-backed league. This saw his 30-year association with the American circuit come to a bitter end, with his Tour card suspended.

Following the formation of the breakaway tour, the PGA Tour itself made a raft of changes in an effort to thwart the threat from its LIV rivals and prevent more of its big names from following in Mickelson’s footsteps and co.

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Most notably, Jay Monahan has introduced a number of “signature events” to the PGA Tour schedule, which see the Tour’s top players compete for prize money of £15.8 million ($20 million), corresponding to the scholarships of their LIV counterparts. Despite being at the center of the bitter fallout, Mickelson admitted he was happy to see his former Tour colleagues benefit from the changes.

Asked if he thought his legacy in the game would be tied to his decision to join LIV, the three-time Masters champion told the league’s Fairway to Heaven podcast: “I sure hope so, because this wasn’t an option – like high events and tour equity wasn’t an option for the guys who came to LIV.

“And so the fact that we are invested and involved and integrated into the success of LIV – and I’m happy for the Tour guys that they now have all of that because they should. But where we are, we “We attract a different crowd and we attract a global crowd.