His most recent analogy will not sit well with Rory McIlroy.
After the Northern Irishman’s collapse at the US Open, a concerning connection between Rory McIlroy and golfer Phil Mickelson has surfaced.
McIlroy had the US Open championship in the palm of his hand last weekend, ten years after his last major victory, only to stumble and allow Bryson DeChambeau to take the lead in the leaderboard.
McIlroy described the afternoon as the hardest of his career after experiencing a heartbreaking moment. He later declared he would be taking a brief hiatus from the game of golf.
Nonetheless, the 35-year-old’splayhas led some to believe he’s headed in the wrong way; McIlroy’s current form has been compared to Mickelson’s early career years.
Prior to taking home his first major championship in April 2004, Mickelson had 23 top-25 results, 17 top-10s, nine top-5s, and three runner-up positions.
Having been the “nearly man” in golf for a considerable amount of time, Mickelson did go on to win six major championships, but it appears that McIlroy has assumed that role from the American.
McIlroy has had 26 top 25 finishes, 21 top 10s, 11 top fives, and three runner-up finishes since winning his last major in 2014. The most recent of these occurred last weekend at Pinehurst.
Given that McIlroy and Mickelson have a long-running rivalry, it’s unlikely that he will take well to being compared to him.
Mostly centered on the rival tour LIV Golf’s rise to prominence in 2022, the two have been at odds with one another ever since.
The four-time major winner, McIlroy, has previously discussed the demanding schedules faced by PGA Tour players and hinted that a break during the off-season could be helpful.
Mickelson, who never stays silent, offered his thoughts on the matter by writing on X, saying, “LIV would be perfect for him.”
Quite a harmless suggestion, don’t you think? “The problem is I don’t think there’s a team that wants him on it because they’d have to deal with all his bs,” Mickelson wrote in response to his initial post.
McIlroy has also participated in the verbal sparring, having earlier made fun of the LIV Golf defector after his 2023 Ryder Cup exclusion.
While playing for Team USA, Mickelson was charged with placing a £314,000 wager on the Ryder Cup in 2012—a charge he fiercely contests.
However, McIlroy made light of the allegations in the run-up to the 2023 edition, joking that “at least he can bet on the Ryder Cup this year because he won’t be a part of it.”
It is anticipated that McIlroy will make his comeback to the course in time for the Scottish Open next month.
