From the Morning Read inbox

Don’t implicate Mickelson in college scam
From the Morning Read inbox
From the Morning Read inbox /

Don’t implicate Mickelson in college scam
Alex Miceli’s story implicating Phil Mickelson as a part of this college-entrance scam is ridiculous (“Mickelson tiptoes around trouble again,” March 15).

Anyone with monetary means, myself included, has hired a tutor or guide to help them through the college-application process, and always with the intent to get their children into the best college situation possible. These tutors’ names come from friends and associates who have used them and, dependent upon their success rate, usually are in great demand and hard to book for the often-yearlong appointments required under this process. Because these people come to your home for 1½ hours, two to three days a week, means that very often a friendship develops between the tutor and the parents/children.

To automatically associate this fraudulent situation and Mickelson is outrageous. There are millions of people using these services each year (myself included), and never would it have occurred to me to ask if anything they were doing was illegal or unethical. You are pointing a finger at someone who in all probability was trying only to give his kid a leg up on the competition. You should be ashamed making assumptions that Mickelson is implicated in fraud, and if that was not your intent, please reread your stories before publishing them.

Joseph J. Dougherty
Philadelphia

Dig into Mickelson incident before making a leap
Alex Miceli is jumping the gun in his condemnation of Phil Mickelson (“Mickelson tiptoes around trouble again,” March 15).

Mickelson admitted to his mistake with the insider-trading tip, and he repaid the money plus interest and didn’t serve any jail time.

Now, this current scandal of buying access to college for kids is serious, and the people who perpetrated it deserve to be brought to justice. But you seem to be jumping to conclusions on Mickelson and his family. You state “but [Mickelson] never was asked or did he pay any money in perpetration of [William “Rick”] Singer’s fraud.”

So, where is the violation and bad judgment here? You might have done better to dig a bit deeper and report on his children’s academic achievements, their current GPAs, organizations they are involved with, etc. They might actually have major universities interested in them. If Mickelson employed Singer and paid big money to get his kids into a university, then he deserves to be called out. Right now, all you have done is tar him with a lack of investigative evidence.

Perhaps you can do a bit more digging and then write about the results. If Mickelson did wrong, then you have a legitimate basis to call him out.

Chris Hamilton
Ashburn, Va.

‘Something smells fishy’ regarding Mickelson
I have a question for Phil Mickelson: If your kids’ grades, activities and world views are so good that colleges are recruiting them, then why would you pay someone to guide you through the application process? (“Mickelson tiptoes around trouble again,” March 15).

My kids are pretty awesome, too, and we just went on some campus visits, then went online and applied, like most 99 percenters.

Something smells fishy. How many times can you play the “innocent me” card and get away with it?

Gregg Cook
Mechanicsburg, Pa.

… or maybe that’s the scent of vermin
So, Phil Mickelson gave money to William “Rick” Singer to help Mickelson’s kids apply to college, but then he tells us that colleges are “fighting” to recruit his kids because his kids have fantastic grades, outstanding outside activities and – this one really gets me – for “their worldly views on things.” If schools are “fighting” over his kids, why pay someone to help?

The Dean Foods deal was deliberate. This is similar. I smell a rat.

Bob Geismar
Boca Raton, Fla.

Miceli’s zeal to tarnish celebrities merely spreads dirt
It seems to me that when the Rick Singer issue broke last week that Morning Read’s Alex Miceli immediately started looking for celebrities whom he could implicate (“Mickelson tiptoes around trouble again,” March 15).

Why is it good press to spread dirt about innocent bystanders?

Gordy Rees
Aurora, Ill.

It’s too soon to condemn Mickelson
Based upon what Alex Miceli revealed in Morning Read, I believe it is very premature to condemn Phil Mickelson for this association and his ability to judge character.

If he is hauled off in handcuffs, with a golf sweater over his head, then I may accept your observation as possible. Until then, it is entirely premature.

Larry E. Mustard
Wyoming, Ohio

Miceli should apologize to Mickelsons
Alex Miceli’s article is ridiculous (“Mickelson tiptoes around trouble again,” March 15).

I will give Miceli his due on Mickelson’s first brush with the stock scandal, but it’s wrong to imply that Mickelson and his wife are less-than-honest people just because a firm they hired to tutor their kids might be as guilty as the families that did cheat.

The good that Phil and Amy Mickelson do for charity is amazing, and they do this anonymously. I think you owe them an apology.

Roy Decker
Hamilton, Ohio

Woods is right about Mickelson
I enjoyed Alex Miceli’s piece on Phil Mickelson (“Mickelson tiptoes around trouble again,” March 15).

I agree with Tiger Woods: Phil is a phony.

Spencer Sappington
Milton, Ga.

Drop the agenda and focus on Mickelson’s good deeds
Alex Miceli’s article regarding Phil Mickelson in his dealings with William “Rick” Singer is nothing more than journalism sensationalized (“Mickelson tiptoes around trouble again,” March 15). As your article so aptly states, nothing in the legal filings suggests that Phil and Amy Mickelson are anything other than guiltless individuals, just trying to do the best for their family.

Maybe another way to present your article would be to talk about how easy it is for even the most savvy and knowledgeable professional athletes to be swindled into scams or taken advantage of.

It appears that most of your articles regarding Mickelson are always taking a negative approach. Why not instead write about a great man who is a good father and husband, the wonderful things he does for his community, the PGA Tour and charities? Or, doesn’t that bring in the readers?

Fran Gee
Livonia, Mich.

Taking aim at Miceli’s ‘unprincipled hit piece’
Alex Miceli’s article on Phil Mickelson and his choice of a “coach” to help his oldest daughter through the college application process was a dreadful example of an unprincipled hit piece (“Mickelson tiptoes around trouble again,” March 15).

Relying totally on the scandal and indictments recently revealed, Miceli offers no evidence of Mickelson’s wrongdoing, which we would have heard about by now if it existed, other than guilt by association. Sad.

Douglas Henry
Alexandria, Va.

Miceli hits it OB on Mickelson commentary
Alex Miceli was out of bounds with his commentary about Phil Mickelson (“Mickelson tiptoes around trouble again,” March 15).

Fraudsters are remarkably capable of scamming anyone.

There probably are 90,000 clueless clients along with the Mickelson family.

Jim Reynolds
Ogdensburg, N.J.

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