Three questions floating across golf’s landscape as the Arnold Palmer Invitational arrives:
Did Phil Mickelson ruin his chance to be a Ryder Cup captain?
Until he blew up his own world two weeks ago, it seemed a foregone conclusion that Mickelson would captain the United States Ryder Cup team in 2025 at Bethpage Black.
They love Philly Mick on Long Island and he has loved them back. Not only could it be the rowdiest Ryder Cup ever, it would also have a “This one’s for Phil” vibe to it.
Not now.
Fugetaboutit.
It will take some serious image polishing, some serious groveling, some serious rebranding for Mickelson to even be a part of the Ryder Cup going forward.
As for captaining a team?
The best thing Mickelson has going for him is the ’25 matches are still more than three years away and it’s two years before Zach Johnson’s successor will be named.
It’s possible Mickelson is willing to sacrifice being a Ryder Cup captain if he signs on with the new Saudi league that must be rethinking its multi-million offer to him in light of his withering criticism of its backers.
Greed, arrogance and, at least to this point, an unwillingness to fully accept the consequences of his words and actions are not qualities that make great leaders. At the moment, it’s hard to trust Mickelson’s decision making which, along with inspiring his players, is what Ryder Cup captains are there for.
In his introductory press conference Monday, Johnson light-footed his way around a question about Mickelson’s possible involvement next year in Rome. A lot can change between now and then a whole lot would have to change for Mickelson to be part of the team room again.
Being Ryder Cup captain is one of the game’s great honors. For all of his on-course achievements, Mickelson also publicly condemned captain Tom Watson in 2014, whacked his moving golf ball on the green during the 2018 U.S. Open and reveled in his perceived role as the smartest guy in the room.
He may have blown his chance to be a Ryder Cup captain. What Mickelson has going for him is how time – and contrition – can lead to forgiveness. People won’t forget what he’s done but they may cut him some slack if he is sufficiently remorseful.
Then again, Tiger Woods can be captain in 2025.
At Mickelson’s expense.
What to make of Bryson DeChambeau’s lingering wrist issue?
As much as he tried to downplay it in the video he posted announcing his withdrawal from the Arnold Palmer Invitational, DeChambeau must be concerned about what he terms a bone bruise that’s taking longer than anticipated to heal.
He says he’ll be ready for the Players Championship next week. Others are suggesting it may be the Masters before DeChambeau is back to tournament golf.
The larger question is how much his relentless training is responsible for this. It has seemed inevitable that DeChambeau’s body would begin to break down and, if he’s lucky, this is an isolated event. If he’s not, he could become a victim of his own obsession with power.
Maybe he already is.
A year ago, DeChambeau truly overpowered Bay Hill in winning the Arnold Palmer Invitational. Since then, he has one top-five finish.
DeChambeau has played just two official events since the Tour Championship last September and he missed the cut in his last start at the Farmers Insurance Open. He sits 196th in FedEx Cup points and he’s gotten more attention for his flirtation with the new Saudi-backed golf league than for his play.
A year ago, DeChambeau truly overpowered Bay Hill in winning the Arnold Palmer Invitational. Since then, he has one top-five finish.
And the wait continues.
Have the stars lost their grip on PGA Tour trophies?
Hudson Swafford, Luke List, Tom Hoge, Scottie Scheffler, Joaquin Niemann and Sepp Straka have won the last six PGA Tour events. Four of them are first-time tour winners – the most in the calendar prior to March since 2002.
Nice guys. Very good players. Not exactly household names.
Scheffler probably qualifies as a star now, having finally won a tournament after making himself at home in contention the past two years. Winning the WM Phoenix Open feels like it’s the first of many and Scheffler looks built for the role into which he’s stepping.
Niemann is quietly becoming a top-level player as well – he reached No. 20 after Riviera – but he doesn’t yet project star quality.
Look at the top of the world rankings and it’s been a while since several players have won but that may say more about the difficulty of winning than the players themselves.
Jon Rahm: He hasn’t won since the U.S. Open but he’s close. Rahm has finished in the top three four times in his last 10 starts and seems due for a big run.
Collin Morikawa: No wins since the Open Championship last summer but let’s be real – he’s right there every week. His last five starts he’s finished 2, T7, T5, T5, T2. Want to bet against him? Didn’t think so.
Patrick Cantlay: A runner-up and two T4 finishes in five starts this year. No worries about Patty Ice.
Viktor Hovland: He won at Mayakoba last fall and he won the Dubai Desert Classic on the DP World Tour earlier this year. He will be posing with another trophy very soon.
Rory McIlroy: It seems like his performances are scrutinized more than any other player. In his last two PGA Tour starts, he has a win (the CJ Cup) and a T10 at Riviera. This may be his week at Bay Hill.
Scheffler: His victory at Phoenix says enough.
Justin Thomas: Next week is the anniversary of his Players Championship win. He hasn’t won again but he keeps sniffing around with four top-10s in six starts this season.
Xander Schauffele: A gold medal carries some serious clout but it doesn’t change the fact Schauffele hasn’t won on tour since the first event in 2019. He doesn’t need to be reminded but he does need to clean up some rough edges that have held him back.
Dustin Johnson: His November Masters victory was a long time ago. Johnson looked unstoppable then but not any more. He fought his driver last season and he doesn’t have a top-20 finish in three starts this season. Have we seen his best?
Hideki Matsuyama: His 3-wood second shot in the first playoff hole which set up his victory at the Sony Open in Hawaii is leader in the clubhouse for best shot of the year. He just goes along doing what he does.