Phil Mickelson endured a challenging 2025 Masters, after heading into Augusta National with high hopes.
Mickelson has been showing signs of some really good form on LIV this season, but that didn’t translate into a successful week at The Masters.
There is still tangible tension between the 54-year-old and the PGA Tour, after his switch to LIV in 2022.
Mickelson called out the PGA Tour after they banned Wesley Bryan last week, following his appearance during LIV’s ‘The Duels’ showdown where YouTube content creators played alongside six tour pros.
It has been a tough few years for the six-time major winner, after he left the PGA Tour.
His performance at Augusta National was typical of how his golf has been in general since 2022.
The Californian would have been gutted to miss the cut at his favourite venue, but Mickelson still found time to congratulate Rory McIlroy after his win at The Masters.
Phil Mickelson was ‘not happy about’ what Noah Kent did during Masters practice round
Mickelson is well known for playing practice rounds alongside young amateurs during Masters week.
And Mickelson, being Mickelson, always likes to have a real match with something on the line.
Noah Kent was making his debut at The Masters this year, and played a practice round alongside Mickelson, Dustin Johnson and Michael Kim.
The 20-year-old is a hugely talented young player, and despite missing the cut at Augusta National, he gave a very good account of himself.
Johnson’s coach – Claude Harmon – told a brilliant story of what happened during that nine-hole practice round match two days before The Masters began.
When speaking on the Son of a Butch podcast, Harmon shared how Kent got under Mickelson’s skin:
“He and DJ played against Phil Mickelson and Michael Kim. I thought that was really huge for Noah. I can’t think of anybody other than maybe Tiger Woods who you would want to play a practice round with during tournament week than Phil Mickelson. The knowledge, the skill-set, the way he thinks about playing that golf course and playing that tournament. There is a reason why he has multiple green jackets. They played a match, it was all square going to the ninth hole. From the ninth fairway, Phil lipped it out, hit it to like two feet, and said to Noah, ‘well, you guys lose’. Noah hit it to like 15-20 feet and buried it on them, and walked it in too with a little first pump, which Phil was not happy about. So I thought that was really, really cool.”
That was obviously slightly tongue in cheek from Harmon, but a young amateur stealing a half off Mickelson on the final hole would undoubtedly have got under the six-time major champion’s skin.
What Jack Nicklaus harshly said about Mickelson
The 54-year-old LIV Golf star received some criticism from Nicklaus just before The Masters began.
Nicklaus responded when asked why Tiger Woods and Mickelson are still able to compete this late on in their careers:
“Well, you know, I don’t know what level Phil is competing at. I guess he’s still playing. He’s playing the LIV Tour, is he? I don’t know if he’s playing or not. I don’t know, you never see that anymore. But Tiger is hurt. I think Tiger will get well and Tiger will be back and play — Tiger will be 50 next year. I believe he’ll probably play the Senior Tour and I believe he’ll probably dominate the Senior Tour. Tiger is too much of a competitor to not play. I don’t believe he will not play. I believe he will play. I don’t think Tiger will play for money. He doesn’t need money. Tiger will play for competition. He loves competition, and he’s very good at it, obviously.
“As far as Phil, I think Phil has been competitive in an odd event here and there but not really in the last few years. You know, Phil has been a good player. There’s no question about that. There’s no question he’s been a good player. But I don’t really know what your question was about the two of them, but I think Tiger will — Tiger has had his issues, and he’s overcome most all of them each time he’s had them. I fully expect him to do that again.“
That was unnecessarily harsh from Nicklaus. Mickelson is the oldest man to win a major don’t forget. He was 50 when he triumphed around Kiawah Island in the 2021 PGA Championship.
Mickelson is clearly a legend of the game, and Nicklaus may well still carry some resentments towards LIV Golf and what they stand for as an entity.
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