Was it a slip of the tongue? A self-deprecating joke? Or is he totally tone-deaf?
Phil Mickelson shared a story Thursday on X, formerly known as Twitter, which has social media buzzing — but perhaps for the wrong reason.
Mickelson’s post appears to be his response to another clip making the rounds which included “serious allegations against the three-time Masters champion involving repeated theft at the storied club [Augusta National] in Georgia,” according to Golf.com.
Mickelson’s rebuttal wasn’t really a rebuttal.
He owned up to the accusations from 2005 and 2006, when he repeatedly removed a sign from a part of the property at Augusta National so he could continue a superstitious practice regimen he developed in 2004 before winning his first green jacket.
And that’s where this gets interesting.
“It never dawned on me that there are cameras everywhere and there’s some video of me crawling under these magnolias with a guy saying, ‘Look at this idiot. Like, what’s he doing?’
“Now, a lot of you might bet that that’s not a true story,” Mickelson said. “Now I’m not a betting man, so I’m not going to take it. But I wouldn’t do that because it’s a true story.”
The video ends with him holding up one of the signs he stole.
And while he’s admitting to committing a criminal act on golf’s most sacred ground, he’s also throwing more gas on the fire that is his sports betting history.
Legendary sports bettor Billy Walters’ book, “Gambler: Secrets from a Life at Risk,” was released on Tuesday.
In excerpts published on the golf site Fire Pit Collective earlier this month, Walters alleged Mickelson bet more than $1 billion on sports over a 30-year period.
Walters also alleged in the book that Mickelson requested for him to bet $400,000 on the golfer’s behalf on the U.S. Team in 2012, when Mickelson competed for as part of the Ryder Cup.
Mickelson vehemently denied the Ryder Cup claim.
“I never bet on the Ryder Cup. While it is well known that I always enjoy a friendly wager on the course, I would never undermine the integrity of the game,” he said in a statement.
“I have also been very open about my gambling addiction. I have previously conveyed my remorse, took responsibility, have gotten help, have been fully committed to therapy that has positively impacted me and I feel good about where I am now. “
So good that he’s joking about it. Unless he isn’t.
