Phil Mickelson Reveals That He Aided in Saudi League's Formation

In an interview, Mickelson admits that he and three other players paid attorneys to craft the proposed league's operating plan.

Phil Mickelson has not only been considering the idea of joining an upstart golf league fronted by Greg Norman, he helped facilitate the proposed new venture’s business plan by paying for attorneys to outline it.

And he acknowledged in an interview with author Alan Shipnuck that he was not really all that excited about joining the new league that is backed by the Saudi Arabia government, but that it was important to use as leverage to get the PGA Tour to do better by its players.

“They’re scary m-----f------ to get involved with,” Mickelson said in an interview that appeared in the Fire Pit Collective website and that will be part of a forthcoming book written by Shipnuck, "Phil: The Rip-Roaring (and Unauthorized!) Biography of Golf’s Most Colorful Superstar."

Mickelson acknowledged that LIV Golf Investments and the new league are simply part of the Saudi government’s attempts at “sportswashing.’’

“We know they killed (Washington Post reporter and U.S. resident Jamal) Khashoggi and have a horrible record on human rights,” he said. “They execute people over there for being gay. Knowing all of this, why would I even consider it? Because this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to shape how the PGA Tour operates.

Related: What to Know about Saudi-Backed Rival League

“They’ve been able to get by with manipulative, coercive, strong-arm tactics but we, the players, had no recourse. As nice a guy as (PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan) comes across as, unless you have leverage, he won’t do what’s right. And the Saudi money has finally given us that leverage. I’m not sure I even want (the new league) to succeed, but just the idea of it is allowing us to get things done with the (PGA) Tour.”

Mickelson said that he and three other players he would not identify paid attorneys to craft the operating plan for the new league.

LIV Golf Investments issued the following statement regarding Mickelson’s comments: “Phil is one of the greatest golfers in the history of the game, and we have an enormous amount of respect for him and his career. Any league or tour would be lucky to have him. Any additional comment should be directed towards Phil.”

The PGA Tour declined to comment. 

At issue for Mickelson is, among other things, the inability for players on the PGA Tour to own their own media rights.

Players are also intrigued by the possibilities that are on the table for the new league, including guaranteed payouts to sign up, 54-hole tournaments with no cuts that assure more guaranteed money each week, sharing in licensing rights and a team concept that will also allow for more prize money.

Mickelson has been among a number of players mentioned as being interested, although it is unclear who has signed on officially. LIV Golf has not disclosed any names or figures, and pushed back on the amount reportedly being offered to Bryson DeChambeau.

There has been talk at Riviera Country Club, site of this week’s Genesis Invitational, that an announcement was imminent in three weeks during the Players Championship, but LIV Golf Investments said there are no announcements currently planned.