Who is Phil Mickelson: Biography, Personal Life, Career, Net Worth and More

Laelia Yang June 11, 2022 | 06:01

Phil Mickelson is one of the most well-off players in golf. Read more to know deeply about his biography, life, career, net worth, and real estate.

Mickelson will be competing with Dustin Johnson in the LIV Golf event near London which is funded by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund. The suspensions are indefinite.

Mickelson has won three of the four Majors and took his tally to six overall with a shock victory in the 2021 PGA Championship at Kiawah Island. Aged 50, that triumph made him the oldest Major winner in history. Only the US Open has eluded the Californian and he's finished runner-up an agonising six times.

For many years, Mickelson carried the mantle of 'nearly-man', having been near the top for so long without winning a Major. He finally ended that with victory in the 2004 Masters although he's never been the world number one.

Six-time golf major champion Phil Mickelson has an estimated net worth of $400 million as of 2022. He has been suspended by the PGA Tour along with 16 other golfers on 9th June 2022.

We will cover everything about Phil Mickelson’s net worth and other details below:

Who Is Phil Mickelson?

Phil Mickelson showed immense interest in golfing as a toddler. His career began in earnest when he was at Arizona State, where he won three NCAA individual championships, before turning pro at age 22. Long known for his inability to win a major despite his elite skills, "Lefty" finally got the monkey off his back with a dramatic victory at the 2004 Masters, and went on to claim four more major championships over the following decade.

Phil Mickelson's Early Life and Family

Philip Alfred Mickelson was born on June 16, 1970, in San Diego, California. Mickelson's career in golf began around the time he could walk. His parents, Phil and Mary, have often recounted the story of a young Mickelson running away from home at the age of three, telling neighbors he was going to the golf course.

Mickelson began an amateur golfing career as a teen. He won 34 San Diego Junior Golf Association titles, using his father's job as an airline pilot to score tickets to his various tournaments. His mother took a second job to help pay for his American Junior Golf Association play, which won him three consecutive AJGA Rolex Player of the Year awards, and a full scholarship to Arizona State University.

Phil Mickelson's Personal Life

Photo: golfdigest

Mickelson inherited his love of golf from his airline pilot father who spent plenty of time teaching him the ropes on both the course and their own home practice area.

During his time at Arizona State University, he met his future wife, Amy McBride. The couple were married in 1996 and have three children. Amy was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2009 and Mickelson took time off from the tour to be with her through treatment. By his 2010 Masters triumph, she was in remission, and the couple shared an emotional celebration on the 18th green.

Phil Mickelson's Career

Career Beginnings

Mickelson attended Arizona State University on a full golf scholarship and was immediately successful competing at the collegiate level. In fact, he won three NCAA individual championships, and three Haskins Awards in 1990, 1991 and 1992 for being selected the Outstanding College Golfer of the year. In total over his collegiate career, Mickelson won 16 tournaments, and he was the second collegiate golfer ever to earn first-team All-American honors four years in a row. He graduated from college in June 1992.

Professional Career

Racking up 44 career PGA Tour wins, Mickelson had a long and successful career. However the first 12 years of his career, he ranked in the top 10 finishing lineups 17 times but never managed to secure a major victory despite multiple 2nd and 3rd places, hence being described as the “best player never to win a major”.

Phil Mickelson’s Victory!

Finally in the year 2004, after 13 hard years of hard work. He secured his victory in the Masters with an 18-foot birdie putt on the final hole! Since then he started racking up victories every year. Mickelson is also the oldest ever winner of the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am Tournament at 48 years old. Mickelson managed 3 Masters victories in his career in 2004, 2006, and 2010.

In the U.S. Open in 2006, Mickelson was en route to join Ben Hogan and Tiger Woods as the only players to win three consecutive majors. However, on the 18th hole on the last day, Mickelson needed to make a par to secure a 1 stroke victory. He decided to keep his aggressive playstyle and hit a driver off the tee. Unfortunately, his drive went way left of the fairway and got caught with trees surrounding it. He then tried to play his second shot to the tree but failed miserably and ended the hole with a double-bogey for a tie for second place.

In 2017 Mickelson suffered two sports hernia surgeries, however, it did not take long in his recovery before his return to golf. He manages to play at the Farmers Insurance Open and the Waste Management Pheonix Open the following week. He suffered not achieving any victories in that time but the winless streak ended in 2018 when he bagged a win at the WGC-Mexico Championship with a total score of -16. Mickelson was also a captain’s pick for Team USA at the 2018 Ryder Cup.

Brand Endorsements

The majority of Mickelson’s earnings came from endorsements rather than prize money at about $50 million. The major companies which Mickelson currently endorses are Callaway, KPMG, Rolex, Workday, Inc, ExxonMobil, and Mizzen+Main. Furthermore, in 2010 Phil Mickelson was treated with the arthritis drug Enbrel and he began endorsing the drug. He was previously sponsored by Titleist, Bearing Point, Barclays, and Ford.

Saudi League Controversy and Payday

In February 2022 Phil found himself in a bit a controversy related to a planned Saudi Golf League known as LIV. In an interview, Phil brought up various points about Saudi Arabia's human rights record while also agreeing that the new league presented a great business opportunity over the PGA. In the wake of the interview Phil lost his longest and most valuable sponsor, KPMG.

The remarks apparently were not enough to deter the organizers of LIV, however. In June 2022 it was reported that Phil had signed a $200 million contract to join the LIV league.

Awards & Achievements

Photo: nj

Besides scoring eight amateur wins, Phil Mickelson has won five ‘Major’ championships, one ‘Players’ championship, one ‘World Golf’ championship, three ‘Tour Champ’/‘FedEx Cup’ events, and 32 other ‘PGA’ titles.

He also has nine ‘European Tour’ wins that include five ‘Major’ championships, two ‘World Golf’ championships and two other ‘European Tour’ titles.

He was the recipient of the 1996 ‘Golf Digest Byron Nelson Award’ and two 2004 ‘ESPY’ awards for the best male golfer and the best championship performance.

He was included in the ‘National Italian American Sports Hall of Fame’ in 2008.

Phil Mickelson's Net Worth and Career Earnings

Phil Mickelson is an American professional golfer who has a net worth of $300 million. He is an incredibly successful golfer, and belongs to the small minority of players in the history of golf to have won three of the four majors. During his career to date, Phil Mickelson's career earnings top $800 million. In some years he has earned $80 to $100 million. In more recent years he has earned $40 to $50 million, of which the vast majority comes from endorsements.

As of this writing he has earned over $100 million in tournament money alone. That's second only Tiger Woods.

Phil Mickelson's Real Estate

In 1999 Phil and Amy paid $1.65 million for a home in La Jolla, California. They sold this house in 2012 for $2.745 million.

For many years Phil and his family called Rancho Santa Fe, California home. In 2001 they paid around $6 million for a 4.55-acre property . They listed it for sale in 2008 for a lofty $12.2 million. They ultimately accepted $5.725 million in January 2015.

In January 2020 Phil bought an undeveloped lot in Jupiter, Florida for an undisclosed amount. His nearby neighbors will include Tiger Woods and Michael Jordan.

Car Collection

Photo: sbnation

His garage includes an Aston Martin Vanquish and a Bentley Continental GT. He is the owner of a customized 48-volt EV EZGO freedom Mach 2 off-road golf cart. He also owns a private jet.

Owner of Private Golf Course

Phil along with a group of investors owns six golf courses in Arizona that offers a private membership upon payment of annual fees.

Phil Mickelson Facts and Trivia

1. He has won six Major championships, three Masters(opens in new tab), one Open(opens in new tab) and two PGA Championships.

2. The only major he has not won is the US Open. A tournament he has been runner-up in six times.

3. Mickelson has had 27 top-fives in Majors.

4. He won the WGC-Mexico Championship(opens in new tab) in 2018, which was after nearly a five year drought.

5. Mickelson is second on the PGA Tour's all-time money list on $89 million. Tiger sits first.

6. He has never won the Fedex Cup.

7. Mickelson has played in 12 Presidents Cups and 12 Ryder Cups.

8. He started playing golf at 18 months old.

9. Phil is one of only five players to win the US Amateur and NCAA Championship title in the same season. (The others are Bryson Dechambeau, Tiger Woods, Jack Nicklaus, and Ryan Moore)

10. Mickelson's middle name is Alfred.

11. He teamed up with Roger Cleveland to create the Callaway Mack Daddy PM Grind wedge (pictured below). He has also helped design the Titleist 731PM irons.

12. Phil surprisingly has never been world number one.

13. Mickelson owns a private jet to get between golf tournaments.

14. The man known as 'Lefty' is actually right handed, and the only thing he does left-handed is play golf.

15. He attended Arizona State University and was a four-time All-American there.

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