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Troy Finnegan is a Newsweek contributor based in Colorado. His focus is golf, football and basketball. Troy has been with Newsweek since February 2025 and also writes for ClutchPoints. He is a graduate of the University of Colorado Boulder. You can get in touch with Troy by emailing t.finnegan@newsweek.com.
Troy Finnegan
Contributing Sports Writer
news article
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.
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Phil Mickelson is already stamped as a three-time Masters champion, with his most recent green jacket coming in 2010. He is back for another run at it in 2025, but not everybody loves his chances.
Of course, Mickelson has spent the last few years playing on the LIV Golf tour and has been out of the public spotlight for the most part as a result.
The six-time major champion hasn’t had a lot of success at the majors since making the move to LIV, but he does have a T-2 finish at The Masters in 2023 as his best result since the jump.
Despite that, golf legend Jack Nicklaus isn’t taking Mickelson seriously as a title contender in 2025. He made that very clear while taking a dig at the LIV Tour, via Brendan Porath of Fried Egg Golf.
“Well, you know, I don’t know what level Phil is competing at. I guess he’s still playing,” Nicklaus said. “He’s playing the LIV Tour, is he? I don’t know if he’s playing or not. I don’t know, you never see that anymore.”
AUGUSTA, GEORGIA – APRIL 10: Phil Mickelson of the United States chips on the second hole during the first round of the 2025 Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club on April 10, 2025 in…
AUGUSTA, GEORGIA – APRIL 10: Phil Mickelson of the United States chips on the second hole during the first round of the 2025 Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club on April 10, 2025 in Augusta, Georgia.
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Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images
While Nicklaus isn’t out there competing anymore, his words still hold plenty of weight as an 18-time major champion, with six of those titles coming at Augusta National.
Mickelson is not near the top of the leaderboard on Thursday, but he is making his way around the course nicely so far. As it stands, “Lefty” is just 1-over par after a pair of back-nine birdies and has just two holes to play.
Based on how he has started his Masters quest off, Mickelson should have a good chance to make the weekend with another solid round on Friday.
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