Phil Mickelson sorry for ‘reckless’ Saudi Super League comments as key sponsor agrees to end deal

Phil Mickelson has rowed back on his comments about working with a proposed Saudi-funded golf tour

Phil Mickelson has apologised for his “reckless” comments on the proposed Saudi Super League and hinted he will take a break from golf to “work on being the man I want to be”.

The American has been at the forefront of recent criticism of the PGA Tour while a newly proposed tour in the Middle East, funded by the Saudi Arabian government’s Public Investment Fund, has been trying to woo the game’s top stars away with the promise of lucrative contracts.

The proposals were swiftly and publicly rejected by many elite players including Rory McIlroy, Jon Rahm and Collin Morikawa, but others have been considering their options.

Mickelson’s apology comes as KPMG, one of the six-time major winner’s main sponsors, announced that their partnership had come to an end by mutual consent following his comments.

In an interview with Fire Pit Collective last week, Mickelson admitted he had been using the Saudi interest to create “leverage” in his dispute with the PGA Tour over matters such as video rights, saying: “[The Saudis] are scary motherf*****s to get involved with. We know they killed [Washington Post reporter Jamal] Khashoggi and have a horrible record on human rights. They execute people over there for being gay. Knowing all of this, why would I even consider it? Because this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to reshape how the PGA Tour operates.”

His comments were widely criticised, notably by McIlroy, who described Mickelson’s words as “naive, selfish, egotistical, ignorant”. McIlroy added: “It was just very surprising and disappointing, sad. I’m sure he’s sitting at home rethinking his position and where he goes from here.”