Phil Apologizes To Hal Over Ballgate, Hopes Hal Feels Welcome

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According to a fresh report from G.C. Digital, Phil Mickelson has told Golf Channel and Golf World reporter Tim Rosaforte that he was in the wrong by singling out decisions made during Hal Sutton's captaincy.

Mickelson acknowledged that the comments came off wrong.

“I’ve communicated with him,” Mickelson told Rosaforte. “I feel awful. It was never meant to be like that. I was trying to use an example of how a captain can have a strong effect. Unfortunately, it came across the way it did.”

Sutton and other past captains have been invited to hang out in the team room and at Hazeltine as a display of unity.

“I was totally in the wrong,” Mickelson said. “I never should have brought that up. I used an extreme example the way decisions can affect play, and I never should have done that because it affected Hal.”

Rosaforte's report on Live From, where he also explains that Mickelson hopes Sutton will still feel welcome to visit the team room, where past captain's have been encouraged to hang out in hopes of creating an "inclusive family feel."

Sutton reportedly left town but is scheduled to appear in a captain's exhibition match with Ben Crenshaw at midday.

The full Rosaforte report:

Randall Mell looked at the episode before Mickelson's apology and explained the whole mess very well. This explanation from Captain Davis Love doesn't add up though, as Mickelson was the one who raised the 2004 matter, not the press.

American captain Davis Love III was asked in his news conference Wednesday if Mickelson’s calling out Sutton again was appropriate. Love indicated Mickelson is in some ways playing defense.

“Unfortunately, some analysts just keep bringing it up over and over and over again, things that have happened in the past,” Love said. “Sometimes, you have to set the record straight.”

If you have the time, Dave Anderson's New York Times account of the 2004 ball episode is worth a read. Perhaps some of the lingering bitterness stems from Sutton making Mickelson adapt to Tiger's equipment...

Should Mickelson be teamed with Woods in the afternoon alternate-shot match today and perhaps again tomorrow, he will be using a rare mixture: Callaway woods, Titleist irons and putter, and a Nike ball. But why Tiger's ball?

"I personally felt that it would be very difficult to tell a guy that was 257 times or whatever the leading player in the world," Sutton said, alluding to Woods. "And you're going to ask him to switch balls. I didn't want to put Tiger in that position, so I just said, 'You need to know how to hit this ball right here."'

Hal Sutton: "I think Phil better get his mind on what he needs to have it on this week, instead of on something that happened ten years ago."

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The past Ryder Cup Captain's played an exhibition off-site today and Alex Miceli of Golfweek captured this video of some of Hal Sutton's remarks (embed below).

Sutton, the 2004 captain at Oakland Hills, had plenty more to say about Phil Mickelson and his assertion that he was not given enough time.

Dave Shedloski reports for GolfDigest.com on Sutton's response.

His key point: Mickelson changed equipment the week prior, yet feels he got sidetracked testing Tiger's ball for the foursomes pairing, one that Sutton explains in the video that he intended as a goodwill gesture.

Sutton, who was one of several former captains to visit the U.S. team room on Tuesday night, went on to stipulate that Mickelson omitted a crucial fact in his recollection of his pairing with Woods: Lefty had changed to Callaway equipment just prior to the 2004 matches. “Yeah and then he didn't even call me and tell me he was changing the equipment,” Sutton said. “He had [his agent] Steve Loy call me and tell me. And he changed not only equipment, he changed ball too. So, print that. Print that. Print that. He let his whole team down. So he's talking about Hal Sutton? He let his whole team down.”

There were many other quotes from the chat, including Sutton's admission that he esentially quit the game after the Ryder Cup heat he took.

Pretty much quit golf, took the blame for everything. Nobody played well that week. If I need to still shoulder the blame for Phil’s play, then I’ll do that.

The video:

Bryson Earns Tour Card With New Driver, Plenty Of Energy

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Noted in Adam Stanley's recap of the clubs in Bryson DeChambeau's winning bag, the 2016-17 DAP Chamiponship winner revealed that his tour-card clinching victory came thanks to advice from Phil Mickelson.

Stanley writes:

DeChambeau got a new driver this week – his previous one broke last week – and it clearly benefited him. He hit 16 fairways Sunday, counting the two playoff holes. He admitted Sunday that he could “go play again tomorrow” as he still had a lot of energy. Conserving that energy was part of some advice he received from Phil Mickelson earlier in the year about how to approach a tournament.

“The strategy is the strategy. Once I become comfortable with a golf course, that’s all I need. I learned I don’t need to be there Sunday before the tournament and play three or four practice rounds. That’s one thing I learned from Phil,” DeChambeau said.

Will Gray explains what DeChambeau's win means for his status in the Web.com Tour playoffs and 2016-17 PGA Tour.

Stinger! 63 Again: Mickelson's Heartbreaker At Troon

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There really wasn't a 62 in the air for Phil Mickelson until the birdie putt on 17 went in, and as I noted for GolfDigest.com based on my observations from the course, even Mickelson wasn't thinking it until late. But once he did, the heartbreak of such a lipout was evident.

Tiger still thinks about his putt at Southern Hills in 2008 and Phil will remember this one for the rest of his life. And 62 remains safe, as does the legacy of the Golf Gods.

That said, it's still a 63 in The Open, the last tournament Phil has won since 2013.

Where does it rank on the list of 28 previous 63's? Jaime Diaz, who wrote a definitive piece recently on 63s, says this one makes the top 5

After the round, Ernie Els lamented the missed chance at history but spoke of his pleasure in watching it unfold. Alex Myers reports.

'11 Flashback: Clinton Foundation Signed On For Eight Years

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Tuesday's news that the Clinton Foundation was no longer going to be associated with the old Bob Hope Classic was surprising, and topped a day later by the news of Phil Mickelson's SEC issues seems pretty embarrassing for the PGA Tour.

Having the announcement of Mickelson as new "ambassador" a day before his SEC matter went public looks terrible given the comments of Mickelson's attorney, which suggests he knew this was coming.

As for the Clinton Foundation saying goodbye, the original 2011 announcement said it was an eight-year deal, yet they are now out after five years?

Thought for players to consider: perhaps Tim Finchem should be spending less time working on building leveraging plays to boost his retirement package and more time talking to Bill and Phil?

Just a thought.