One of the world’s greatest golf icons will be missing from the Masters after 28 years

We are just weeks away from the start of the world’s most famous golf tournament. From April 7-10, the 86th edition of the iconically named The Masters will take place at the National Golf Club in Augusta, Georgia. This year, however, spectators won’t see one of the biggest stalwarts on the course. Phil Mickelson will remain out of action.

It will be a very unusual sight for regular Masters viewers. In the magical surroundings of legendary Augusta, former world number one and crowd favourite Phil Mickelson will not appear after 28 years.

The three-time Masters winner (2004, 2006, 2010) recently found himself embroiled in an affair when he publicly and vulgarly criticised Saudi Arabia’s plans for a lucrative golf Super League. Mickelson was very sharp and accused the country of human rights abuses.

He later apologized for his remarks, but some sponsors have also disavowed him. Likewise, Mickelson criticized the PGA Tour for not treating players at the top of the rankings and those at the bottom equally.

The whole affair is too tangled, however, and none of the Czech specialist websites has gone into a detailed explanation. Either way, it is clear that the famous golfer and Hall of Fame member has withdrawn for a time to attend to his loved ones and work on himself humanly.

Many experts have referred to this year’s Masters as the perfect opportunity for a comeback. It is therefore not entirely clear if Mickelson’s absence from the most famous tournament is purely voluntary or forced by other circumstances.

However, his name does not appear on the official start list, so it is clear that he will miss the Masters for the first time since 1994. He first appeared at Augusta in 1991 and has only missed the tournament twice since.

Source: PGA Tour, ESPN