Phil Mickelson: Career Biography, Majors, and the Left-Handed Legend

Philip Alfred Mickelson is the greatest left-handed golfer who ever played the game and one of the most beloved and controversial figures in professional golf. With 6 major championships, 45 PGA Tour victories, and a career spanning four decades at the highest level, Lefty has given fans a lifetime of highlights, heartbreaks, and moments of sheer brilliance that no right-handed golfer could have produced.

Growing Up Left-Handed in a Right-Handed World

Born June 16, 1970, in San Diego, California, Phil Mickelson learned to play golf by mirroring his right-handed father's swing. The result was a lefty with a swing built around feel, touch, and creativity rather than conventional mechanics, a foundation that would define his playing style for life.

He was exceptional from a young age. He won three NCAA individual championships while at Arizona State. He became the last amateur to win a PGA Tour event when he captured the 1991 Northern Telecom Open, beating tour professionals as a 20-year-old college student. He turned professional in 1992 after graduating and promptly won on tour that year.

The Long Wait for a Major

For most of the 1990s and into the early 2000s, Phil Mickelson was defined as much by his close calls in major championships as his victories. He finished second at the U.S. Open multiple times, earning the somewhat unfair nickname of the "best player never to win a major" that followed him through his late twenties and early thirties.

The narrative of Phil as a nearly-man was always overstated. He was winning tournaments regularly, finishing high on the money list, and establishing himself as one of the best players of his generation. But the majors remained elusive in a way that drew constant commentary.

Then came April 2004 and Augusta National.

The 2004 Masters: A Career-Defining Moment

Phil Mickelson entered the final round of the 2004 Masters two shots behind Ernie Els. He played the back nine with controlled aggression, made the putts he needed to make, and arrived at the 18th tee tied for the lead. His approach shot landed on the front of the green and he rolled in the winning birdie putt, leaping into his caddie Jim "Bones" Mackay's arms in a moment of pure joy that captured every fan who had been waiting alongside him.

Mickelson shot a 31 on the back nine that Sunday, finishing 9-under-par total to win his first major at age 33. The crowd response was overwhelming. His father, also named Phil, was there in tears. His wife Amy, who had given birth to their third child just weeks earlier, was watching from home.

The weight lifted was visible and immediate. Mickelson became a different golfer after that win, one unburdened by what he had not yet accomplished.

Building a Major Championship Record

The 2004 Masters opened a window that Mickelson walked through repeatedly. He won the 2006 Masters for a second green jacket. He won the 2005 PGA Championship at Baltusrol, holing a 30-foot birdie putt on the 72nd hole to win by one. He won The Open Championship at Muirfield in 2013, producing four rounds of near-perfect links golf to win the Claret Jug.

The 2021 PGA Championship at Kiawah Island was the crowning achievement of a remarkable second act. At 50 years and 11 months old, Mickelson became the oldest major champion in history, holding off a charging field in blustery coastal conditions to win by two shots. He was not supposed to be a factor. He was the oldest player in the field, and he won going away.

The U.S. Open Heartbreaks

No narrative in Phil Mickelson's career is more discussed than his relationship with the U.S. Open. He finished second six times, including some genuinely agonizing near-misses. The 2006 U.S. Open at Winged Foot, where he needed only a par on the final hole to win and instead made double bogey after hitting his drive into a hospitality tent, remains one of golf's most analyzed sequences.

He never won the U.S. Open, making him one of the few players in history to complete something like a reverse career Grand Slam, winning each of the other three majors without capturing the one held in his home country.

Lefty's Short Game: A Generation Ahead

What separates Mickelson from every other professional golfer is his short game, specifically his ability with lob wedges and flop shots to manufacture shots that simply do not exist in other players' repertoires. His technique with the 60 and 64-degree wedges, developed through thousands of hours of practice in the sand and rough around his San Diego home, allowed him to attempt shots from positions where other players would chip out sideways.

The famous flop shot over the bunker at the 72nd hole of the 2010 Masters, which stopped within a foot of the cup to save par, is one example of hundreds of moments where Mickelson's short game creativity produced outcomes that defied expectation.

He has published multiple instructional books on his short game technique and conducts Phil Mickelson Clinics where he demonstrates techniques that professionals half his age cannot replicate.

Controversy and the LIV Golf Saga

In early 2022, reported comments Mickelson made about the Saudi-backed LIV Golf League created significant controversy. He acknowledged concerns about Saudi Arabia's human rights record while simultaneously describing LIV Golf as an opportunity to leverage Saudi investment to restructure professional golf's power dynamics. The comments were widely criticized and Mickelson took a months-long break from public life.

He joined LIV Golf when the league launched in June 2022 and has been one of its most prominent players. His relationship with the PGA Tour became adversarial before the announced merger framework between the PGA Tour and the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia changed the landscape in 2023.

Whatever the ultimate outcome of professional golf's ongoing realignment, Mickelson's role in accelerating the pressure on the PGA Tour's monopoly model will be a significant chapter in the sport's history.

Phil Mickelson's Major Championship Record

Masters: 2004, 2006, 2010 (3 titles). PGA Championship: 2005, 2021 (2 titles). The Open Championship: 2013 (1 title). Total: 6 major championships. He won 45 PGA Tour events and is a three-time Ryder Cup hero for the United States.

FAQs About Phil Mickelson

Why is Phil Mickelson called Lefty? Mickelson plays golf left-handed despite being naturally right-handed in other activities. He learned by mirroring his right-handed father's swing as a child, earning him the nickname Lefty.

How many majors has Phil Mickelson won? Phil Mickelson has won 6 major championships: 3 Masters, 2 PGA Championships, and 1 Open Championship.

Did Phil Mickelson ever win the U.S. Open? No. The U.S. Open is the one major Mickelson never won despite six second-place finishes. It is the only component of the career Grand Slam he did not complete.

How old was Phil Mickelson when he won his last major? Mickelson was 50 years and 11 months old when he won the 2021 PGA Championship, making him the oldest major champion in golf history.