‘Phil Lets Us Into His Life’: A Famous Author Presents a Bold Reason for Choosing Tiger Woods’ Biggest Rival Phil Mickelson Over Him

Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson are considered the best golfers of all time. While Woods has won 82 PGA Tour titles, including 15 majors, the latter has won 45, including 5 majors. The 15-time major winner overpowers his professional rival, in every way.

Furthermore, Woods stayed with the PGA Tour for its legacy and turned down nearly a billion offer to play for the new LIV Golf. Meanwhile, Mickelson took the $200 million deal from the league and went against the Tour he has been playing for the last thirty years. 

Nicknamed Lefty, Mickelson has received backlash for joining the league. Yet, the famous sportswriter, Rick Riley, considers his mistakes more forgiving than those of Woods. 

Why does Rick Riley prefer Mickelson over Woods? 

“Phil lets us into his life,” Riley explained. “Tiger stations Dobermans at the door of his.” Riley described the golfers in his latest book, ‘So Help Me Golf.’

The book includes him describing his 18 favorite golf courses in the world, why he loves golf, and, most importantly, the big topics like why Jack Nicklaus is better than Tiger Woods. Other than the famous golf duo, Riley has also written about the LIV Golf CEO Greg Norman, Severiano Ballesteros, Ernie Els, and Jordan Spieth. 

Read More: Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson Hated Each Other. What Changed All of That?

Riley worked as a sports writer for Sports Illustrated and later for ESPN before quitting in 2014. He has authored more than 10 books, including bestselling books like ‘Commander-in-Cheat: How Golf Explains Trump and Who’s Your Caddy?’

Rick Riley on Tiger Woods

As a golfer, Woods has a full score from the Sportscaster Hall of Famer. However, that’s not the case when it comes to the golfer’s personality. 

“He’s terrible with fans, a rotten tipper,” Riley wrote about the 2019 Masters champion in his book, ‘So Help Me Golf.’ “And has something eating at him that he doesn’t seem to want to deal with.” 

Notably, Mickelson is considered one of the most approachable golfers on the PGA Tour. He is also known for being friendly toward his fans. Furthermore, Golf Digest once named Lefty the biggest tipper in the golf world, and how the golf club staff appreciated him for it. 

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Riley is an experienced sports writer and is known for adding humor to his writings. He has worked closely with Mickelson and Woods since the beginning of their careers. What do you think of his take on the golfers’ personalities? Let us know in the comments below.