Let us go back to 2016. Phil Mickelson was a known trash talker, but golfer Matt Kuchar revealed how Mickelson would drastically tone down his words when Tiger Woods was near. Mickelson would go around boasting about how many majors he had, and of course, there was no one with a strong rebuttal, except for Woods, who could easily one-up him. But now, there is yet another person who has a hilarious thing or two to say about the 55-year-old’s tendency to yap his way into his competition’s heads.

In a new YouTube video on LIV Golf, fans were given a sneak peek into the upcoming The Duels: Virginia. Wesley Bryan was excited about playing along with pro golfers like Jon Rahm, Sergio Garcia, Phil Mickelson, and also about creating content simultaneously. The video includes all the participants, and they share their experience playing in the event. The LIV Golf Duels’ purpose is to connect the two worlds of content creation and on-course performance, and so, golf veterans join hands with golf content creators, forming a team of two. The pairings formed were: Mickelson and Grant Horvat; Garcia and George Bryan; Bubba Watson and Luke Kwon; Joaquin Niemann and Rick Shiels; Dustin Johnson and Wesley Bryan; and Cameron Smith and Nick “Fat Perez” Stubbe.

So Wesley Bryan got the opportunity to observe Mickelson closely. What did he say about the veteran golfer on LIV’s YouTube channel? He stated, “Phil makes himself a very easy target,” and the camera cut to Mickelson pressure-talking once again. “He just constantly, just needles and needles and needles and needles,” Bryan added. He meant how Mickelson intimidates his fellow players by talking to them. It’s a clever strategy from the veteran’s side to win. Bryan’s brother George also made some remarks about the veteran’s off-course personality, saying:

“Well, Grant, I would love and would be happy for Grant to win, but Phil, I just you know, the text that he would fight like. I don’t know if I’d want that.” However, Bryan’s participation in the Duels led to his suspension from the PGA Tour, which was a sudden jolt in the golf community.

Bryan is an experienced professional golfer playing in 134 events and has received an overall prize money earnings of $ 5 million since his career in 2010. He is also known for content creation skills, which is why he played both The PGA Tour Creator Classic and its LIV Golf version, the Duels. As per PGA rules, its members are not allowed to participate in events not sanctioned by the PGA Tour.

While Bryan’s return to the tour remains indefinite as the suspension has not given a timeline, he did have a fair number of golfers supporting him, including Lefty.

Phil Mickelson comes to defend Wesley Bryan!

Despite his intimidating and outspoken character, Phil Mickelson has always been the one to stand up for what he feels is right. He firmly believes in the value that his opinion holds and says it when he feels like the situation requires it. He has always been outspoken about issues and loopholes in the PGA rulebook, but this time he believed the PGA Tour took unfair action against Wesley Bryan. He wrote in a post two months ago: “Here’s a question. Normally, when an entity violates independent contract law, they deny that it happened and forces the contractor/individual to prove that it did. In this case, the PGA Tour blatantly admits they are illegally banning an independent contractor so why doesn’t the DOJ step in and enforce the law? Why does the individual have to sue to enforcer the law? DOJ do your fffing job!”

To understand the basic reason for the suspension is simple: the PGA Tour didn’t take it well to see one of its players promoting the rival league. So, as per Mickelson’s take, it means that Bryan is a member who plays with an independent contract, which would mean he can play for multiple organizations.

Bryan, however, is not the only one who has fallen victim to the dispute between the LIV Golf League and the PGA Tour. In the 2022-23 season, 22 players, including Lefty and Garcia, were suspended from attending the PGA Tour events for moving into the LIV Golf league. However, with the new CEO appointed, there are rumors that promising reforms beneficial for the players, the business, and the fans will be implemented. So, it all comes down to being patient. What do you think of the PGA’s decision to suspend Bryan? Let us know in the comments below.