19th Hole
Phil Mickelson discusses his equipment setup and what he’s tinkering with for The Match
Ahead of Sunday’s “The Match: Champions for Charity”, Phil Mickelson appeared on the Callaway Golf Podcast where he revealed his approach equipment-wise for the contest.
Mickelson took down Woods in the first edition of The Match and revealed on the podcast his bag breakdown and how course conditions will impact his decision making and strategy this Sunday.
‘I have the Apex Pro short irons, eight, nine, and wedge. And then I have the Epic Forged Irons that hit the ball a little higher for the four, five, six and seven. The questions that I have are, do I use a 2-iron or a 5-wood, I haven’t played the golf course so I don’t know do I want to hit that 2-iron that I can hit low if it’s really windy and I need to get the ball down on the ground and run, I’ll use a 2-iron. If there’s some Par-5s or some holes that I need a little more carry, I’ll use the 5-wood…’
As far as equipment tinkering for Sunday’s contest, the five-time major champion explained on the show that he’s been looking to improve all areas of his driver, with a switch to a ‘slightly softer shaft’ being one of the primary changes which he says allows him to swing more freely.
‘I’m really excited with some of the changes I’ve made – one in my golf swing setup, one in the driver head itself, as well as the shaft. And going to a slightly softer shaft allows me to square the clubhead up a lot easier.
So my miss with the driver is left. And this slightly softer shaft gets the clubhead to square up a little bit easier through impact, so I don’t have to use my hands as much.
And my miss really isn’t left anymore, it’s actually right (if anything), which is going to take some getting used to. But one of the things that allows me to play a little bit more the way I like to play, which is swinging the clubhead and not really thinking about positions. It allows me to swing freely with the driver. So those changes I think are allowing me to drive it much straighter.’
Check out the clubs Mickelson and Woods will use on Sunday in our WITB piece.
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19th Hole
Phil Mickelson drops big retirement hint; Says LIV will grow the game ‘on a much more global basis’
While speaking with Bloomberg, golf legend Phil Mickelson acknowledged that he is inching close towards retirement.
“I’m 53 now,” Phil said, “and my career, you know, it’s — if I’m being truthful, it’s on — it’s — it’s — I’m a — it’s towards its end.”
Mickelson added that one of his focuses now is helping other young players.
“Now, I would like to help others find the same enjoyment and fulfillment that the game has provided me. I’d like them to experience that as well.”
The six-time major champion credited LIV with reaching new markets in golf to help it grow.
“I think that’s exciting for everyone involved in the game because we are going to reach markets that we didn’t reach before. I think it’s going to inspire more golf courses, inspire more manufacturers selling clubs and equipment, but also inspiring young kids to try to play golf professionally. I just see that the game of golf is going to grow on a much more global basis because of the excitement and the presence that LIV Golf has.”
Mickelson is playing at this week’s LIV Singapore and shot a first round 72 (+1).
More from the 19th Hole
- The wild reason why Mark Wahlberg was initially denied entry to an Australian golf club
- 2-time major champ announces shock retirement from the sport at age of 33
- Edoardo Molinari reveals the latest PGA Tour golfer to turn down ‘good offer’ from LIV Golf
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19th Hole
Tiger explains why golf has ‘negative connotations’ for daughter Sam
While Tiger Woods’ son, Charlie, has certainly inherited his father’s love for golf, his daughter, Sam, has not.
On Wednesday, Tiger made an appearance on The Today Show with Carson Daly and explained his daughter’s relationship with golf.
“Golf has negative connotations for her. When she was growing up, golf took daddy away from her. I had to pack, I had to leave, and I was gone for weeks. So, there were negative connotations to it.
“We developed our own relationship and our own rapport outside of golf. We do things that doesn’t involve golf. Meanwhile, my son and I, everything we do is golf related.”
The nine-minute interview touches on plenty of other subjects, such as Tiger’s relationship with his late father, Earl.
It’s arguably the most open we’ve seen the 15-time major champion in an interview and is most definitely worth watching.
Tiger Woods sits down with Carson Daly to talk about golf, growing up in Southern California, his father and his new apparel line, Sun Day Red. pic.twitter.com/2TFbSNxzxq
— TODAY (@TODAYshow) May 1, 2024
More from the 19th Hole
- The wild reason why Mark Wahlberg was initially denied entry to an Australian golf club
- 2-time major champ announces shock retirement from the sport at age of 33
- Edoardo Molinari reveals the latest PGA Tour golfer to turn down ‘good offer’ from LIV Golf
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19th Hole
Gary Player claims this is what ‘completely ruined’ Tiger Woods’ career
While speaking with KW Golf, golf legend Gary Player said that he believes swing coaches ruined the career of Tiger Woods.
“The US Open at Pebble Beach, he won by 15 shots. You know what that’s like? It’s like running the 100 meters in seven seconds. The next week, he’s having a lesson from a man who, I don’t think, if he played in the Masters, could break 80.”
“And then he goes to another guy who couldn’t probably break 85 in the Masters with the pressure, or the British Open or the PGA on the final day. And he’s having lessons from them.”
“Why did Tiger do that? He was so good, but I understand he wanted to get better,” Player went on. “If he had just gone along and never changed, he would have won at least 22.. He would’ve gone down as the greatest athlete the world has ever seen.”
In 2008, Woods had won 14 majors and was 33 years old. It would take him eleven years to win his 15th at the 2019 Masters.
In addition to the swing coach issue, there are many other issues throughout the career of Woods that golf fans will look back on and wonder “what if.”
More from the 19th Hole
- The wild reason why Mark Wahlberg was initially denied entry to an Australian golf club
- 2-time major champ announces shock retirement from the sport at age of 33
- Edoardo Molinari reveals the latest PGA Tour golfer to turn down ‘good offer’ from LIV Golf
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