Six-time major champion and golf legend Phil Mickelson has officially withdrawn from next month’s Open Championship as the fallout from ongoing allegations regarding his personal conduct continues to develop. This decision marks a significant turning point in a challenging year for the veteran golfer, who has seen his professional and personal life under intense public scrutiny.

Mickelson has participated in only a single tournament on the LIV Golf circuit throughout the current year, consistently citing private family health matters as the primary reason for his prolonged absence from competitive play. His confirmed withdrawal from the tournament at Royal Birkdale will represent the first time in 17 years that he has missed The Open, a championship he famously won in 2013 at Muirfield.

The announcement follows a detailed report concerning Mickelson’s private life published by Skratch and authored by veteran golf writer Alan Shipnuck. In the report, Mickelson is accused of inappropriate conduct involving Ashley Perez, the ex-wife of fellow professional golfer Pat Perez, during the 2015 Barclays tournament. According to the account provided by Ashley Perez, Mickelson showed her an intimate personal image on his mobile device while they were together at his private villa at the Liberty National Golf Course. She indicated that she refused his advances at the time.

Pat Perez later confronted Mickelson regarding the incident, and reports suggest that Mickelson ultimately offered an apology for his actions.

Concurrently, the 56-year-old athlete is navigating another significant public controversy. Earlier this month, *Golf Digest* reported that Mickelson is no longer a member of The Farms Golf Club in California following allegations of non-consensual and inappropriate physical contact with a female staff member at the club. Following the report, a representative confirmed that Mickelson had formally resigned from the club.

The broader report by Skratch suggests that these incidents may be viewed as part of a recurring pattern of behavior, referencing further claims about graphic propositions made during social gatherings in the past. These ongoing allegations have prompted a wide-ranging discussion within the sporting community regarding the professional and ethical standards expected of high-profile athletes.

In response to the circulating reports, a spokeswoman for Mickelson issued a statement addressing the claims: “Some of the allegations circulating about Mr. Mickelson are false, and others revisit mistakes he has already acknowledged, publicly or privately. Recovery is not a straight line. Mr. Mickelson’s priority is to become the husband, father, and man his family deserves”.

Mickelson’s attorney, Tom Clare, also provided a robust defense of his client in a recent statement: “A small segment of the golf media has decided that because Mr. Mickelson is a successful golfer, every detail of his private and family life is theirs to exploit. Recycling mistakes he has already acknowledged as new reporting, and dragging private family matters into public view, is reckless. It is the pursuit of clicks at the expense of the truth”.

The absence of a player of Mickelson’s caliber from the major tournament circuit raises questions about the future of his career in professional golf. Having missed The Masters and the PGA Championship, and without a special invitation for the U.S. Open, the sporting world remains attentive to how these developments will shape his legacy.

Six-time major champion and golf legend Phil Mickelson has officially withdrawn from next month’s Open Championship at Royal Birkdale, marking a somber milestone in his storied career. For the first time since he turned professional, Mickelson will miss all four major championships in a single calendar year—a significant departure for a player who has been a central figure in major golf for over three decades. Throughout 2026, Mickelson has participated in only a single tournament on the LIV Golf circuit, which took place in South Africa in March.

He has remained largely absent from competitive play for the remainder of the season, consistently citing a “private family health matter” as the primary reason for his withdrawal from marquee events, including The Masters, the PGA Championship, and the U.S. Open. The decision to withdraw from The Open was processed on June 18, well before the recent surge in public allegations, yet it comes amidst a period of intense scrutiny regarding his private life. In late June, a sweeping investigative report by journalist Alan Shipnuck, published via Skratch, detailed a pattern of alleged misconduct spanning more than a decade.

The report cites 19 sources and includes allegations from Ashley Perez, the ex-wife of professional golfer Pat Perez, who claims Mickelson made inappropriate advances toward her during the 2015 Barclays tournament. According to Perez, the incident involved Mickelson showing her an explicit image on his phone while her husband was away, a claim that reportedly led to a confrontation between the two golfers. Concurrently, Mickelson has faced significant fallout at the club level.

Earlier this year, it was reported that he had been removed as a member of The Farms Golf Club in Rancho Santa Fe, California, following a report of member misconduct involving a female staff member. The club confirmed that it conducted an independent investigation and took “decisive action,” resulting in the termination of his membership. This incident is reportedly one of three departures from San Diego-area golf clubs associated with his personal conduct since 2021. In response to these developments, a spokesperson for Mickelson issued a statement challenging the framing of the reports: “Some of the allegations circulating about Mr.

Mickelson are false, and others revisit mistakes he has already acknowledged, publicly or privately. Stacking the disputed claims next to the ones he has owned does not make them credible. It instead contributes to a false and misleading narrative”. The statement further emphasized that Mickelson’s current focus remains on his family, noting that “recovery is not a straight line” and that he is prioritizing his role as a husband and father during this challenging time.

Mickelson’s legal counsel, Tom Clare, has taken a firm stance against the media coverage, describing it as an attempt to exploit private family matters for clicks. Clare stated that Mickelson has retained defamation counsel and is “determined to hold accountable any publication or individual trafficking in speculation or false rumours”. As the golf world looks toward the upcoming Open Championship at Royal Birkdale, the absence of a six-time major champion remains a point of significant discussion.

With his future on the LIV Golf circuit currently uncertain and his path to major tournament play facing new institutional headwinds, the situation continues to evolve. For now, Mickelson remains away from the public eye, with no clear timeline regarding a potential return to professional competition.