In 2018, Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods took part in an all-star game of golf known simply and iconically as The Match. At the time, a Bleacher Report article referred to it as “a compelling sports entertainment experiment that will look and feel different than any kind of golf we’ve seen” — and the event has been a regular occurrence ever since.
The latest installment is scheduled for December 10, with Woods and Rory McIlroy competing against Justin Thomas and Jordan Spieth. But this time out, one of the event’s regulars won’t be involved. In a recent interview with Golf, executive producer Bryan Zuriff told the magazine that Mickelson will be absent this time around. And if you’ve been following coverage of Mickelson’s involvement with LIV Golf, you can probably figure out why.
“He went where he went, and we’re connected with the PGA Tour,” Zuriff told Golf. “So I mean, this is a PGA Tour event.”
Zuriff went on to refer to Mickelson as having been “a great partner” for the event. “He understands that when you make those choices, certain things get sacrificed. And this is one of the things that got sacrificed,” he added.
Elsewhere in the interview, Zuriff told Golf about the long-term plans for The Match, which includes focusing the winter installment of the event on professional golfers and bringing in bigger names from outside of the sport for the summer iteration.
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