Phil Mickelson makes expected Open decision hours after fresh misconduct allegations emerge

Phil Mickelson has withdrawn from next month's Open at Royal Birkdale.

27 Jun 2026

Phil Mickelson has withdrawn from next month's Open, according to a report.

Telegraph Sport are reporting the 56-year-old has decided not to play in the final men's major of the year next month.

Mickelson, who won the Claret Jug in 2013 after a memorable duel with Henrik Stenson, was hoping to make an appearance at Royal Birkdale.

He has largely been absent from competition this year, explaining that he and his wife, Amy, needed to focus on a "private family health matter."

But his decision comes amid fresh allegations that Lefty showed a lewd photograph of himself to a fellow golfer's wife.

Phil Mickelson has withdrawn from next month's Open

On Friday, Skratch published a bombshell report detailing the alleged inappropriate behaviour by Mickelson.

In the article, written by Alan Shipnuck, he details an incident between Pat Perez, his ex-wife Ashley and Mickelson in 2015.

Mickelson had invited the couple to stay with in New York during a PGA Tour event all three spent an evening together enjoying a few drinks.

Ashley Perez claimed that when her then husband excused himself to go to the bathroom, Mickelson took out his phone and showed her an explicit photo.

She claimed the photograph showed a naked Mickelson "with an erection while flexing one bicep".

"Phil says to me, 'I'm going to leave my bedroom door open tonight,'" Ashley said. "When Pat falls asleep I want you to come see me.

"We were staying next door to Phil, and Pat still had to play in the tournament."

Phil Mickelson's attorney has disputed the allegations

Ashley said she didn't immediately tell her husband what happened as she didn't want to distract him during the tournament.

Pat Perez touched on the incident during an appearance Claude Harmon's podcast in 2022, accusing Mickelson of "crossing the line".

He never provided the full details of what happened and declined to comment for the article.

"Phil crossed the line with me that is just uncrossable and unforgivable," he said on Harmon's podcast.

"He knows he screwed up. He apologised for the action, but I cannot forgive him."

Ashley, who Shipnuck claims wasn't paid for the piece that was published on a PGA Tour-affiliated website, said she was breaking her silence now as there is a "culture of silence that keeps women from coming forward".

"I want to give other women the courage to share their truth," she said.

"With Phil, I feel like the pattern has been there for years but people have been afraid to go public because it’s Phil Mickelson.

"We give these golfers so much adulation and money, they think they're gods. They think they're untouchable.

"Being a pro athlete doesn't exempt you from behaving respectfully in society. With Phil, you're dealing with an egotistical narcissist.

"Phil will keep going until he gets caught.

"If Phil's behaviour is ever going to change, he has to understand the trauma he has caused so many people in so many parts of his life."

Mickeson's attorney, Tom Clare, told Skratch that some of the claims about the golfer are outright false whilst others "revisit mistakes" that he has already acknowledged publicly or privately.

"Stacking the disputed claims next to the ones he has owned does not make them credible," he said. "It instead contributes to a false and misleading narrative.

"No person, no article, and no book can present an accurate, complete, or personal story of the life Mr Mickelson and his family have lived.

"His story, struggles, and recovery belong to him and to the people who have shared it closely alongside him.

"Recovery is not a straight line. Throughout their 35-year relationship, his wife, Amy Mickelson, has supported Mr Mickelson and their family with extraordinary grace, unwavering love, and the belief that people are measured not only by their failures, but by what they do to make them right.

“Mr Mickelson’s priority is to become the husband, father, and man his family deserves. Right now, that means giving his full attention to a private family health matter. He understands that parts of his life are public, but his family’s private matters are not."

The report comes weeks after Golf Digest reported on Mickelson's abrupt departure from a high-end golf club in San Diego.

GD reported Mickelson had his membership revoked from The Farms Golf Club in Rancho Santa Fe over allegations of inappropriate contact with a female employee.