In breaking news fresh into our news desk, which should rock the golfing world hours into its third major championship of the year, Phil Mickelson has been disqualified from this week's British Open Championship at Muirfield. According to sources, Mickelson did not brake any rules, but has failed to show up for registration and pre-championship check-in. After the heartbreaking end to another US Open for him, it'd be easy to say Phil just needed some time off to clear his head.
However, Mickelson competed in the Scottish Open just last week. And won! He is clearly playing well and was primed to compete at The Open Championship, which has usually been a struggle for him. But, after a little digging, we were able to get to the bottom of this situation.
Phil, as we know, is a family man. Before the US Open, he flew home to San Diego to attend his daughter's 8th grade graduation. He then flew back to Philadelphia on his private charter Wednesday night/Thursday morning, arriving at the Merion Golf Club just hours before his early tee time. Well, being the loving husband and father that he is, Phil flew from Scotland back to Southern California on Monday to attend his 10-year-old son's camp awards ceremony. Evan, the Mickelson's youngest child, was receiving the camp's "Participation Award," for volunteering at every camp activity. What a father!
But, Phil ran into a problem. In June, he hopped onto his private plane and flew four hours back to Philadelphia. Easy enough, right? According to sources, Mickelson only took off from San Diego International Airport at about 5 PM PST. The journey from SoCal to Scotland is a lengthy 15 hours or so, and it seems like Phil thought he could make it there in half the time for his 1:44 AM PST tee time. The R&A, which organizes The Open Championship, informed Mr. Mickelson of his disqualification while he was in flight. They have declined to make a statement, although that will likely be forthcoming in the next few hours.
In what's sure to be the most controversial story in golf since Tiger's Masters penalty situation, we'll watch closely as the facts unfold from this saga. Many will undoubtedly question Mickelson's reasoning for boarding a plane just 9 hours before his scheduled tee time, but he'll face plenty of questions on the topic in the coming weeks and months.
**UPDATE**
Phil Mickelson's website has released a statement regarding his dismissal from The Open Championship:
"While we're disappointed that [Phil] is unable to compete in the year's third major, we respect R&A's ruling on the matter. Phil has chosen that his family will play a major part in his life, and if golf gets in the way, then so be it. He is different than Tiger in this way. He wishes all the competitors good luck this week, except for Tiger of course, and will be watching with great admiration."
While that seems sincere, there is absolutely no mention of why "Lefty" would board his plane with zero chance to make it across the pond before his tee time. While we search for possible answers, we'll be watching The Open Championship this weekend, seeing who collapses in Phil's place.
In related news, a pilot from the charter company that Phil Mickelson uses has reportedly been let go from his position. A company spokesman declined to comment on the cause of firing.
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