Phil Mickelson has been one of the most controversial golfers playing the sport in the current era. Although the professional is extremely talented, he has been under constant scrutiny for his decision to jump ships to LIV Golf when the opportunity presented. 

However, most of the backlash can be traced back to a famous sportswriter who ruthlessly threw the golfer under the bus while taking a jab at his legacy. And now, in another surprising accusation, the author appears to call the golfer a “secret agent”.

Golf writer shares his side of the Phil Mickelson story

Lefty has been under the scrutinizing eyes of the golf community due to his switch to the Saudi-backed League. However, he found himself in a dicey situation owing to none other than Alan Shipnuck, who revealed Mickelson’s incendiary comments on Saudi Arabia in one of his books. However, in his new work, LIV and Let Die, the writer revealed the behind-the-scenes story of the 6X major winner in the launch of LIV Golf.

In the podcast Five Clubs with Gary Williams, Shipnuck dubbed the 53-year-old as a “secret agent” who helped launch the PIF-funded league from “the shadows”. Moreover, bringing in the Premier Golf League, he recalled how the American athlete had been a huge supporter of the same after which he switched sides to the Middle Eastern circuit following the alliance of the European and the PGA Tour killing PGL.

Although the golfer went all in on the alternative circuit, the author divulged how Mickelson had also gone to the Silver Lake Private Equity Group in a bid to “get them to fund his own breakaway league.” Adding on to his words, the 50-year-old golf enthusiast pointed out how the 11X European Tour champ was “working three sides of the street simultaneously” all the while negotiating with the PGA Tour in a bid to make his situation better on the circuit — a true “center of the maze,” as per Shipnuck.

Mickelson has been a favorite topic for Shipnuck for decades now. They have a history.

Shipnuck’s comments and Mickelson’s response

The LIV golfer had suffered from an eating disorder around two decades back. The issue was much pursued by Shipnuck himself. And in one of his books, Phil: The Rip-Roaring (and Unauthorized!) Biography of Golf’s Most Colorful Superstar, the writer mentions how, after the 1999 PGA Championship, Lefty confronted him about his remarks about the same.

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Mickelson didn’t answer any of his questions during the press conference after the major. Instead, he called him aside and retorted how a lot of the things he said in the “little web column is bulls**t,” all the while recounting how it was the first time he saw the golfer using “profanity.” 

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