Phil Mickelson will miss all four majors for the first time in his professional career.
Mickelson’s name is no longer listed in the Open Championship’s field on the tournament’s website, instead moving to the non-playing portion of exempt players. Mickelson captured the claret jug in 2013 at Muirfield, and past champions are allowed to compete until 60 years old.
Mickelson’s only competitive appearance of the year came in mid-March at LIV Golf’s South Africa event, where he tied for 48th. Ahead of the LIV Golf season opener in Saudi Arabia, Mickelson posted on social media he would not be able to play in LIV’s first two events because he and wife Amy needed to be present for a family health matter. He missed the Masters in April for the same reason, saying he would be “out for an extended period of time.” He withdrew from the PGA Championship and wasn’t extended a special invitation for the U.S. Open.
Earlier this month, Golf Digest reported that Mickelson is no longer a member of his hometown club, the Farms outside San Diego, after a female club employee accused the six-time major champion of making nonconsensual, inappropriate contact with her before a round of golf. Mickelson declined invitations to comment directly on the allegations, but a spokesperson for the golfer offered the following statement to Golf Digest: “Any misunderstanding has been cleared up. Phil continues to attend to a family health matter and is uncertain when he will be able to return to professional golf.” Mickelson’s defamation lawyer Tom Clare also told Golf Digest, “There is a great deal of misinformation circulating and, while Phil’s full attention is devoted to a private family health matter, he has retained defamation counsel and is determined to hold accountable any publication or individual trafficking in speculation or false rumors.”
This will be the first time Mickelson has missed the Open since 2009, when he pulled out of the event to be with Amy during cancer treatments.
Tiger Woods, Zach Johnson and Ernie Els are other past champions not in the field at Royal Birkdale. Earlier this weekend Dustin Johnson pulled out of Open local qualifying.
The Open begins July 16. Scottie Scheffler is the defending champion.