Phil Mickelson is finally expected to return from the wilderness and compete at a LIV Golf event in South Africa later this week with the Masters on the horizon.
The golfing great hasn’t played since last August in LIV’s 2025 finale and there were growing concerns over what was going on away from the game after he announced an indefinite absence over ‘a family health matter’.
Mickelson initially said he would be absent for the first two events of the LIV season over the issue, which he explained he had to be present for alongside his wife, Amy.
But he missed four events, in Riyadh, Adelaide, Hong Kong and Singapore before his team confirmed this week that the six-time Major champion will now return.
No further information about what kept Mickelson away was mentioned, with the announcement on X simply underlining the good news in saying: ‘Phil returns to the lineup this week in South Africa!’
It’s a timely return to the game for Mickelson with the 55-year-old inevitably having an eye on the upcoming Masters, which starts in under a month on Thursday, April 9.
Phil Mickelson returns to action for LIV this week after an absence over a personal matter
Mickelson missed four LIV events for a personal matter he had to attend to with his wife, Amy
Mickelson is in line to make his 34th appearance at the iconic Augusta course, a place where he has emerged victorious on three separate occasions (in 2004, 2006 and 2010).
This week’s LIV event is the last one before the first major of the calendar.
Mickelson endured a tough time at the Majors in 2025, missing the cut in three of the four – including at Augusta. At The Open, held at Royal Portrush, he ended tied 56th.
His highest finish in his final six LIV events in 2025 was tied 23rd, too.
Rory McIlroy will arrive at Augusta as the defending champion this year, completing the Grand Slam with Masters victory in 2025.
The Northern Irishman became just the sixth player to complete golf’s Grand Slam, an honor Mickelson has been on the brink of achieving for years.
The US Open is the one event to have evaded Mickeslon – agonizingly, he has finished second in the event on six occasions. The most recent was 2013.
His LIV absence came at a bad time for the Saudi-backed rebel tour, too. Brooks Koepka and Patrick Reed remarkably quit the tour to return to the PGA circuit – albeit Reed has to make it back via a year with the DP World Tour.
