Mickelson update given on absence after family | Golf News

Phil Mickelson will finally make his LIV Golf season debut this week after sitting out the first 4 occasions of the marketing campaign.

Mickelson revealed on the eve of the season that he and his spouse, Amy, “had to be present for a family health matter,” the specifics of which haven’t been disclosed. The six-time major champion was absent from tournaments in Saudi Arabia, Australia, Hong Kong, and Singapore, but he’ll finally start his season in South Africa on Thursday.

It would be the first event LIV has hosted in Africa, with large crowds anticipated at Steyn City close to Johannesburg. Bryson DeChambeau would be the main draw after a dramatic playoff victory in Singapore on Sunday.

For Mickelson, his return comes at a essential time. He was working out of probabilities to compete in a match forward of next month’s Masters, and he has also fallen behind in the battle to keep away from relegation.

At least 11 full-time LIV members will lose their playing cards at the end of the season, and the 55-year-old’s absence has given his opponents a four-event benefit.

Mickelson will start nearly 25 factors below the cutoff line, the equal of an eighth-place end in one event. The deficit is much from unimaginable to overcome, but it represents a vital drawback, and it stays unclear whether or not LIV’s guidelines offer him any safety, given his personal circumstances.

Mickelson’s comeback represents a much-needed carry for his HyFlyers squad, which presently sits twelfth in the 13-team league. Only Brendan Steele has delivered strong performances during his absence, securing a T10 end in Singapore to rise to twenty ninth in the person rankings.

Cameron Tringale sits just one place above the relegation zone in forty sixth place, while extremely touted rookie Michael La Sasso, the 2025 NCAA champion, has struggled in his transition to skilled golf and finds himself in 52nd place.

Mickelson’s peak years are definitely in the rearview mirror, but despite being sidelined since August, he ought to give you the option to regain kind shortly following a respectable 2025 season, which featured three top 10 finishes and a Twenty fourth-place place in the standings, surpassing gamers like Tyrrell Hatton and Brooks Koepka.

Mickelson is not the only distinguished participant who has been absent from LIV this 12 months; former world No. 1 Lee Westwood missed the opening two tournaments due to a wrist injury.

However, the 52-year-old has rebounded impressively, posting a T18 in Hong Kong before claiming third place in Singapore. Those performances alone have propelled the Englishman to tenth in the standings, and Mickelson shall be hoping for comparable success.

“Really proud,” Westwood said of his podium end at Sentosa Golf Club. “I’ve obviously had a few things to deal with. The wrist injury was not ideal coming into the season between Saudi and Australia, and then got stuck in Dubai and got to Hong Kong late, so I had the time change to deal with, not much practice.

“I felt like I used to be swinging it nicely, but little golf coming into Hong Kong. I performed nicely last week and then adopted it up by enjoying great this week.”