Brandel Chamblee ripped Phil Mickelson to shreds

Brandel Chamblee, renowned for his candid commentary on the Golf Channel, has unleashed a scathing critique aimed squarely at Phil Mickelson, branding him as the most irksome defector in the world of golf. With the Saudi-backed breakaway league, LIV Golf, stirring controversy, Chamblee seized the opportunity to launch a comprehensive dismantling of Mickelson’s actions since departing from the PGA Tour.

In a revealing interview with USA Today, Chamblee minced no words as he dissected Mickelson’s impact on the sport and weighed in on the ongoing dynamics between the PGA Tour and LIV Golf. Despite Rory McIlroy’s softened stance, Chamblee remains steadfast in his stance.

In an earlier conversation with Golf Week, Chamblee didn’t hold back his frustration towards Mickelson, stating, “Well, Phil. Hardly any of these other players had the popularity to make a difference to tilt the game one direction or another. Phil had the potential to do a lot of good in the game. Look, he could have sat in that chair as a commentator for the next 20, 30 years. I have no doubt that he’d have been good at it.

“By all accounts, he’s a pretty smart guy. By all accounts, he spent a lot of time thinking about some cool stuff in the game of golf, and I would have liked to have listened to him for 20 or 30 years. I’d liked to have heard what he had to say. The fans loved him. You know, within the small world of golf, there were a lot of people that didn’t particularly care for him, but I certainly enjoyed watching him play.

“I didn’t love the way he played. I heard him say somewhere along the line that he got criticised for his aggressive style of play. It’s like, who else out here besides Tiger has won more than me? Maybe some people should try to play more like me. If there’s one criticism I have of what’s going on out here outside of the LIV world, it’s that everybody is being coached in the same way. They know their dispersion rates. They know where to play and everybody is counting cards, so to speak.

“Phil wasn’t afraid to hit on 16, to make a gambling analogy, which may not be entirely fair to Phil, but as a gambler on the golf course, that’s what people pay to watch. Do something that’s a little bit risky, crazy — he did some things that were crazy on the golf course, like here on 16 out of the right trees. But he had a very high level of skill and a very high level of knowledge of what he was capable of, and it was fun to watch him.

I’m disappointed in him because he could have left the game in a better place. People were, early in his career or most of his career, they were making the analogy that he had similarities to Palmer, go for broke, gave the fans what they wanted, and I think he turned his back on the game. He turned his back on the stage that made him who he was and all the people that came before him.

“I think that the players that have gone to LIV have done a disservice to the game of golf. It’s like they’re going to get theirs. It’s like they’re all pulling the ladders up. They had to climb up those ladders to get to where they were, and the people that had placed those ladders were the generations that came before them. But they got there, and they think, well, I did it all on my own, I’m going to get everything for me. I’m pulling the ladders up.

“I think Phil could have done a lot of good for the game of golf. Instead he’s really hurt the game.”

Chamblee’s words reflect a deep disappointment in Mickelson’s departure from the traditional golfing establishment, highlighting the potential he had to shape the sport positively. As tensions between traditional tours and breakaway leagues continue to simmer, Chamblee’s criticism serves as a stark reminder of the ramifications of such divisive choices in the golfing world.