LIV Golf Surprise: Phil Mickelson Not Listed in Field for Debut Event…Yet

The main takeaway from the LIV Golf Investments announcement of the field for its debut event in England next week was that Dustin Johnson was among the PGA Tour pros listed.

But after combing through the list that included Sergio Garcia, Louis Oosthuizen, Lee Westwood, Ian Poulter, and Talor Gooch and wondering how the PGA Tour will react to those players defying its order to not play in the fledgling tour’s event, a surprise equaling Johnson’s inclusion was discovered:

Phil Mickelson was not on the list.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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A post shared by Phil Mickelson (@philmickelson)

But just because the six-time major winner isn’t in the field now, it doesn’t mean that he will not be playing the event at Centurion outside London from June 9-11.

The field will have 48 golfers; 42 were announced and five are being saved for qualifiers from the Asian Tour. That leaves one spot left.

Here it is…48 guys will play in the first LIV event. There are 42 names here on this list—DJ, Sergio, Poulter, Ootshuizen— with 5 spots to be filled by guys who qualify in Asian Tour event, and 1 final spot for…well, we’ll leave that guess to you.

But DJ to LIV is a shock. pic.twitter.com/sKFqXMRmq4

— Dan Rapaport (@Daniel_Rapaport) June 1, 2022

But this raises questions about whether Mickelson is still welcome to play on the tour after he criticized the Saudi government in comments published in February, which have since had a negative impact on his career. He lost longtime sponsors Callaway and KPMG and decided not to play in the Masters or defend his title at the PGA Championship, also putting into question whether he’s mentally and/or physically ready to compete in this high-profile tournament.

But it seems like LIV tour CEO Greg Norman is saving a spot in the field for “Lefty,” and time will tell if he takes it.

Cover Image Via SportingNews