Akshay Bhatia’s decision to turn down a lucrative deal offered by his mentor, Phil Mickelson, created ripples across the golf community. However, weeks after his protege, Bhatia, turned down the LIV offer, Mickelson moved swiftly to invest in the future by signing the reigning NCAA Men’s Champion, Michael La Sasso, to his HyFlyers GC team.

After the signing was made official, Mickelson stated, “Michael is one of the most exciting young players in the game today, bringing a competitive fire that’s evident every time he tees it up.”

However, what makes the move a momentous career pivot for La Sasso is what he had to forego. Firstly, the Ole Miss senior will have to let go of his remaining college career.  The 21-year-old was one of the 25 golfers listed in the 2025 Haskins Award watch list, presented to the top college golfer in the country. Now that he turned pro, he would be deemed ineligible. But that’s only one, and the least interesting part of this decision.

La Sasso is also letting go of his chance to play the 2026 Masters, which he earned thanks to the 2025 NCAA Men’s Individual Championship victory. But to make that trip, the Ole Miss senior had to remain an amateur. Since he turned pro, he will lose out on that. If that seems a strange decision, the youngster is no stranger to controversies either.

The 21-year-old made the headlines at the 2025 Walker Cup after reports emerged of his locker room shenanigans. Allegedly, La Sasso irked his teammates and opponents alike because of his brashness. Brendan Porath of Fried Egg Golf also cited a conversation with noted golf writer, Geoff Shackelford, to claim that the youngster was warned by the rules officials at the Walker Cup for breach of conduct.

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Reportedly, La Sasso put his putter on the ground to show his dissatisfaction after he wasn’t conceded a gimme putt. “The rules official in the group – [Geoff] Shackleford told me this – went up to him afterwards and said effectively this ‘That’s not in the spirit of the Walker Cup,'” Porath noted at that time. Not the only time the youngster made headlines last year.

At the 2025 Sanderson Farms Championship, Michael La Sasso turned heads after firing a 66 on the first round. He was near the top of the leaderboard. However, he was assessed a two-stroke penalty for violating Rule 8.1a and improving his lie on the sixth hole. He declined to speak to the media afterward, and the Tour’s statement only said that the rules breach occurred during his second shot on the 6th hole.

The youngster missed the cut after a second-round 76. That was also his last PGA Tour start. Before that, he made the cut at the 2025 3M Open, tying for 44th. Mickelson saw the promise in him and picked him to fill the spot left vacant by Andy Ogletree, who was relegated after last season.

Showering more praise on the rising golfer, Mickelson added, “He combines tremendous power and speed with an exceptional feel for the game. Beyond his talent, his personality, work ethic, and commitment to being a great teammate make him a terrific addition to HyFlyers GC.”

Even the previous day, when the official X handle of HyFlyers GC hinted at a new update of welcoming the new face to the team, Mickelson expressed his excitement and commented, “He’s REALLY good 😏.”

Michael La Sasso was equally pumped to join the rebel league. 

Michael La Sasso is excited to be mentored by Phil Mickelson

The 21-year-old golfer from Ole Miss was on the 2024-2025 Men’s Golf roster for his University. He was ranked third in Golf NIL College Men’s Rankings. He signed an NIL deal with Breezy Golf last August. Breezy Golf is the brand behind the popular golf channel, Bob Does Sports. However, the fate of the deal now remains unclear.

HyFlyers GC has an official apparel sponsorship deal with Primo Golf, which the team inked only last year. Per the terms of the deal, Mickelson and his teammates were expected to wear only Primo Golf apparel at all LIV Golf events and the major championships. So it’s unclear how La Sasso and Bob Does Sports will navigate through this.

Regardless, the 21-year-old is excited to tee it up at LIV Golf Saudi Arabia. 

After the announcement from LIV Golf, Michael La Sasso shared, “I’m incredibly excited to join HyFlyers GC and take this next step in my career. It’s a rare opportunity to learn from one of the greatest players in the history of the game, and I don’t take that lightly. LIV Golf allows me to compete at the highest level on a global stage, and I thrive in a team environment, especially one with the camaraderie and support that defines HyFlyers GC.”

While the captain of the club is looking forward to ‘accelerating his learning curve’, the 21-year-old is keeping his focus on learning and improving while also striving to help the team shine in the upcoming season.