Phil Mickelson ‘didn’t say a word’ during Tuesday’s Masters Champions Dinner at Augusta National, as he reunited with a number of his PGA Tour rivals.
Mickelson was one of a number of LIV stars in attendance at the Augusta dinner on Tuesday, including defending champion and host Jon Rahm. The annual dinner is hosted by the previous year’s champion, with Rahm taking the reins this time around after his win 12 months ago.
Winners from throughout the tournament’s iconic history gathered in celebration of the Spanish star’s triumph, and one man who has been an attendee for some time is his LIV colleague Mickelson.
The 53-year-old first earned his seat at the table in 2004 after winning his first green jacket, before going on to add two more to his locker in 2006 and 2010. Down the years, ‘Lefty’ has often been the centre of the party according to a number of his fellow champions.
This time around though things appeared to be different. Mickelson has found himself at the centre of the saga between the PGA Tour and LIV Golf in recent years, having led the initial exodus to the Saudi-backed league back in 2022. Tuesday saw him reunite with his Tour rivals, and according to Sir Nick Faldo, the American was far from his talkative self.
Speaking during commentary for Sky Sports on Thursday, Faldo said: “Phil was very quiet on Tuesday, he didn’t say a word. He was dead quiet, standing next to me. I wonder why.” The Englishman may well have been referring to his stance on the LIV setup, having been a previous critic.
Commenting last summer, Faldo claimed LIV could well no longer exist after it was announced the PGA Tour were set to partner with the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia (PIF). “I don’t think so, because nobody’s really interested,’ Faldo claimed when asked if LIV had a future as part of the deal.
“They’re not going to get the sponsorship that they want. They call it a team (event) and it’s not because it’s strokeplay… It’s only half a dozen [players] that are really current, half of the field I don’t really know and half the field are there for the very nice last-placed money that you still get if you shoot 20-over.”
Faldo appeared to take another swipe at the breakaway league earlier this week when discussing the prospects of LIV member Rahm defending his Masters title – a feat the Englishman managed in 1990. “He’s a hell of a player, but he’s going to have to make a little bit more effort to step it up and get the right intensity,” he told the Sky Sports Golf Podcast.
““Whether coming to defend you can do it, or whether he’s just not quite sharp enough because he hasn’t tested himself quite as much, we’ll have to wait and see.”
