Phil Being Phil
Phil Mickelson has hilarious reaction to a college golf tournament's unfair pin position
A video of a college golfer struggling with an unfair pin position went viral on Tuesday and prompted the NAIA to issue an apology. It also prompted a pretty funny reaction from one of the game's all-time greatest golfers.
Long before LIV came around, Phil Mickelson's most controversial move involving golf came at the 2018 U.S. Open. In case you don't remember, Mickelson raced a bogey putt by the 13th hole during the third round at Shinnecock Hills—and then raced after his ball to give it a whack while it was still moving in one of the wildest scenes in U.S. Open history. Here's a refresher:
It's also a reminder of why this guy was the King of Golf Content for decades. Mickelson claimed the move was done in part to save strokes—although, that didn't work because with the two-shot penalty he made a 10.
"Look, I mean no disrespect by anybody," Mickelson said. "I know it's a two-shot penalty, and at the time I just didn't feel like going back and forth and hitting the same shot over. I took the two-shot penalty and moved on. It's my understanding of the rules. I've had multiple times where I've wanted to do that. I just finally did.
"It was going to go down in the same spot behind the bunker. I wasn't going to have a shot. I don't know if I was able to save a shot or not. I know it's a two-shot penalty hitting a moving ball. I tried to hit it as close as I could on the next one, and you take the two shots and move on."
Of course, many believed he was protesting the USGA's course setup. Anyway, that leads us back to what happened during Tuesday's first round of the NAIA Women's Golf National Championship:
And to Mickelson's response:
Hey, the six-time major champ might be onto something there. Hitting a moving ball and taking a two-shot penalty would probably have been better than taking a 10 on the hole like multiple golfers did. Either way, well played, Phil.