Phil Mickelson makes truly wild (!) claim after LIV Golf denied OWGR points

Phil Mickelson has got involved in a fiery debate after the breakaway LIV Golf League were officially denied world ranking points.

Phil Mickelson makes truly wild (!) claim after LIV Golf denied OWGR points
Phil Mickelson makes truly wild (!) claim after LIV Golf denied OWGR points

Phil Mickelson may not be as prominent in the golf world as he once was, but we know Lefty is always lurking in the shadows. 

These days, Mickelson's hot takes come primarily from his X account as he engages with golf fans, fellow players and journalists. 

Unsurprisingly, Mickelson has got involved in a debate about the big LIV Golf news. 

That would be the breakaway tour being officially denied world ranking points. 

OWGR chairman Peter Dawson confirmed the news in a letter to Greg Norman and LIV chief operating officer Gary Davidson. 

Dawson stated there were a myriad of reasons the governing body said 'no' to the Saudi-backed league. 

Chief among them was the format and the fact LIV players are tied down to multi-year contracts. 

There is hope for LIV, though, as Dawson's letter stated the rival league wouldn't be getting accreditation 'at this time'. 

Another LIV golfer, Peter Uihlein, claimed Dawson 'loves' LIV but wants to see the tour make some minor tweaks. 

Mickelson has a completely different point of view and claimed LIV were never going to get world ranking points. 

Responding to 2008 Masters champion Trevor Immelman, Mickelson claimed the decision was as a result of 'a monopoly run by all the governing bodies'. 

Immelman wrote: 

"If I were going to start a pro golf tour, and I decided that I wanted my tour to have world ranking points available for the players, I'd probably at the outset make sure that my tour did whatever the world ranking organization required in order to comply."

And Mickelson replied:

"Trevor, LIV was NEVER going to get points. Why? 1) It's a monopoly run by all the governing bodies 2) The PGA Tour TV contract is based on OWGR criteria for them to get all their money 3) They would lose leverage in negotiations if LIV got points 4) Last but not least, [the] Tour has BORROWED against the TV deal! If they don't hit their bench marks and don't get all their tv money (from CBS) they will have an immediate capital call. Don't believe me? Ask Sean McManus."

McManus is the current chief executive officer of CBS Sports. He is due to retire next year. 

Phil Mickelson makes truly wild (!) claim after LIV Golf denied OWGR points

Mickelson is not the only LIV player to have offered their thoughts on the points snub. 

Cameron Smith labelled the OWGR 'obsolete' and Talor Gooch said the decision was 'not surprising'.  

Bryson DeChambeau was disappointed too, although he did offer a solution for LIV players getting access into the four majors

Mickelson added that he doesn't care if LIV never gets world ranking points. 

"This is move six in a long game of chess," he wrote. 

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