Phil Mickelson has been public enemy No. 1 in the golf world ever since he made the controversial decision to join the LIV Golf Invitational Series. Brandel Chamblee, a former PGA Tour golfer who serves as an analyst for the Golf Channel, ripped Phil Mickelson and other LIV Golf competitors ahead of the U.S. Open.
Chamblee tweeted Tuesday that Mickelson and LIV Golf CEO Greg Norman should be removed from the World Golf Hall of Fame.
“As far as I know, it’s never happened that an athlete has been kicked out of their Hall Of Fame but both Norman and Mickelson should be removed from the Hall Of Fame,” Chamblee tweeted. “They’ve dishonored the game and they threaten to destroy the game that they have both so enormously profited from.”
Mickelson is reportedly making $200 million with his LIV deal. He addressed the media on Monday ahead of the U.S. Open and responded to the scrutiny he received for playing in the Saudi-funded golf league.
“I respect and I understand their opinions, and I understand that they have strong feelings and strong emotions regarding this choice. And I certainly respect that,” Mickelson said, adding joining LIV Golf was the “right decision” for him.
Chamblee, who turned pro in 1985 and won the Greater Vancouver Open in 1998, continued Monday after Mickelson’s press conference.
“He’s suffering the consequences of a decision he made that some believe he was taking a flamethrower to the PGA Tour,” Chamblee said, via Golf Week. “By my count there were 22 questions and not a single question about being the oldest major champion of all time, not a single question about trying to complete the career Grand Slam. It was all about his decision to join a league that I think many view as an attempt at a hostile takeover.
“He’s been pretty darn successful in the media center at manipulating to whatever extent he can, but there have been moments over the years where he’s been atrocious in the media center. Most notably in 2014 at the Ryder Cup, where we got I think a real glimpse into who Phil Mickelson is. Machiavellian? Sure. Blaming Tom Watson for his failures in the Ryder Cup, and then when asked after literally denigrating one of the greats in the game in front of the whole world by a media member, why would you do such a thing? He almost acted incredulous and said, ‘How could you take what I just did as denigrating Tom Watson?’ Everyone in that room knew what they were seeing. It was disingenuous at best, but duplicitous more accurately describes it.”
Chamblee added: “Nothing I’ve seen from Phil Mickelson from that moment to this moment has changed. It turns out when you’re trying to sell a lie, it’s hard to talk with a great deal of comfort and ease.”
Mickelson will tee off at the U.S. Open on Thursday.
