AUGUSTA, Ga. — There was a time when Phil Mickelson could hardly walk around Augusta National without a massive, Tiger-level wave of humanity flowing in his wake. Calls of “Let’s go Phil!” echoed through the pines with every round.
The patrons at Augusta National could sympathize when Phil found himself in trouble off the tee or around the green — He plays just like us! — and they’d make mental notes of how he escaped that trouble, planning to use a Phil-style stinger or daring flop shot the next weekend at the local muni.
Phil Mickelson had literally nothing in common with the patrons outside the ropes, aside from some dubious fashion choices. And yet, they felt like Phil was one of them, a cheerful everyguy who, shucks, just loves playing golf and throwing a few thumbs-up here and there.
That was then. This is now: Mickelson, startling a couple patrons when he wandered by himself into the pine straw to the left side of No. 9, searching for his wayward tee shot. While Woods commanded thousands of patrons, you could count up most of Mickelson’s traveling gallery and still have a hand free to carry a commemorative Masters cup of Domestic Beer.
Why the seismic shift? Mickelson torched his own reputation late in 2021 when he offered up his “scary motherf*****s” take on LIV Golf and its Saudi Arabian backers. Put aside the fact that Mickelson was largely right about how the golf world would implode and fracture. The entire LIV Golf saga, with millions of dollars flowing into his pockets from questionable sources, annihilated Mickelson’s “Everyguy” image and opened up a massive chasm between him and his most devoted, loyal fans.
Augusta National is always in the process of shaping not only its future, but its own past. The more unseemly elements of the club’s history are allowed to fade from memory, while images of Arnie and Jack and a young Tiger remain ever-present. You won’t see significant promotion of Mickelson on Masters channels, and he was virtually silent this week. Even at the Champions Dinner, according to Nick Faldo, Mickelson was “dead quiet” — a sharp departure from Mickelson’s usual rollicking rip-everyone-in-sight persona.
Mickelson is a three-time Masters champion with the ability to talk about anything from Russian ballet to quantum physics for hours straight. But he didn’t receive — or didn’t want — a designated interview slot prior to the Masters. He declined to speak to the media after his Monday practice round, and his post-round conversations Thursday and Friday were brief and largely confined to the effects of the wind on his game.
Perhaps this is just the way it will be for Mickelson going forward at Augusta. He’ll always have a standing tee time here during the second week of April, but it’s strange to see him joining the ranks of past champions who make their way around the course in near-anonymity, with only an older remember-when gallery trailing them.
Mickelson finished up his Saturday round shortly before 4 p.m. at 2-over, 6-over for the tournament and 13 strokes behind Scottie Scheffler’s lead. He received polite applause as he shook the hand of playing partner Sahith Theegala, but then you or I would receive pretty much the same response; the Masters galleries are nothing if not politely supportive.
If you listen closely enough, the “Let’s go, Phil!” cheers are still there. But now they mostly come from patrons just sitting in their chairs, waiting on Tiger or Scottie while Mickelson walks on by.
