MIAMI — Phil Mickelson did it. He did it with a perfect precision to equal the finest golf shot he ever sculpted. With one comment, he pretty much explained why the sports world is clueless on how to deal with the real-world matter of human rights.
He was speaking of the Saudi Arabian government’s aim to start the Super Golf League, a huge-money new professional tour to rival the PGA Tour. The comments, public this week, are from a forthcoming book by Alan Shipnuck, “Phil: The Rip-Roaring (and Unauthorized!) Biography of Golf’s Most Colorful Superstar.”
“They’re scary motherf-----s to get involved with,” Mickelson said, of the Saudi government. “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 [their new league]? Because this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to reshape how the PGA Tour operates. The Saudi money has finally given us that leverage.”
