‘I knew it was going to happen’
Phil Mickelson makes new claim on PGA Tour ahead of $50 million season-ending Team Golf Championship of LIV at Trump National Doral.
Phil Mickelson said he expects another mass exodus of PGA Tour players to LIV Golf.
Speaking before the $50 million team championship at Trump National Doral in Miami, Lefty said there was a hitch.
And that would be the number of seats available on the breakaway trip.
“I knew it was going to happen,” Mickelson said in response to a question from Telegraph Sport’s Jamie Corrigan.
“When players look at LIV, they are wanting to be a part of it.
“Everybody here is happy and enjoying what we are doing and enjoying the team aspect of it and enjoying each other and the camaraderie and enjoying playing golf globally and all the benefits that come with playing this tour.
“So there’s a lot of players that see that and want to be a part of it. The question is, you know, how many spots are available. There’s a lot more players that want to come than there are spots.”
Mickelson said the ongoing talks between the PGA Tour, DP World Tour and LIV Golf’s backers to ratify the 6 June ‘framework agreement’ allows for players to make the switch.
“I think it allows and opens the door for that, yes,” he added.
Mickelson and LIV suffered a huge blow last week when it was confirmed the rival tournament had been denied recognition by the Official World Golf Ranking.
It must be said that the decision was not surprising, despite the fact that PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan and his European counterpart Keith Pelley recused themselves from the vote.
Leaders of the four majors rejected the LIV request made last July.
OWGR President Peter Dawson said the decision was not political. “We are not at war with them,” he said.
“LIV players are clearly good enough to be ranked. They simply don’t play a format where they can be ranked fairly with the other 24 rounds and thousands of players trying to compete on it .”
Mickelson, six-time major champion, says the four major championships are actually conspiring with the PGA Tour.
“There’s a lot going on behind the scenes about how important our presence is in winning points for the PGA Tour,” he said.
He added:
“I think big companies need to protect their products and there are probably other ways to do that by creating slots.
“If they want to ensure they have the best golf courses, they could create facilities that would allow LIV players to compete in major tournaments without them being required to use OWGR, which would affect impact television contracts and PGA Tour revenue if they provide only LIV.”
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