Despite not being as present on social media as he was 18 months ago, Phil Mickelson (opens in new tab) still occasionally pops up to give his thoughts on matters within golf or to communicate with his fans and fellow players.
On Saturday, during the final round of the Farmers Insurance Open (opens in new tab)Lefty posted his first tweet in over a month but, instead of it being about LIV Golf, it was instead about the outfit choice of tournament leader, Sam Ryder, specifically his joggers and socks…
(Image credit: Twitter: @PhilMickelson)
Ryder, who at the time of writing is holding off the likes of Jon Rahm (opens in new tab)Max Homa and Hideki Matsuyama, is currently donning a pair of maroon/purple joggers which cut off at the ankle, with the American also wearing some black ankle socks.
In all honesty, it shouldn’t be a huge bug, especially with golf changing its image and allowing hoodies on the golf course (opens in new tab) for example. However, Mickelson didn’t seem pleased by the fashion choice, with the six-time Major winner tweeting his views on his social media channel.
In the tweet, Mickelson stated: “The Tour doesn’t allow shorts but does allow this week’s leader to wear joggers with ankle socks? Showing 4 inches of ankle? I’m no fashion guy, never will be, but there are some things I won’t ever understand.”
One hole. One birdie for @SamRyderSU 💪 He now leads by 4 @FarmersInsOpen. pic.twitter.com/kVFEsfwZsJJanuary 28, 2023
It’s not as if joggers are new to the professional circuit. Players like Justin Thomas and Erik van Rooyen have been regularly seen wearing them in tournament play, with there being plenty of brands producing them for the club golfer (opens in new tab).
After moving to LIV Golf back in June, the Saudi-backed series has allowed players to wear shorts in their tournaments (opens in new tab), something which is still prohibited on the PGA Tour. What’s more, at The 150th Open Championship, CBS reporter, Kyle Porter, pointed out that it appeared Mickelson was wearing a t-shirt at St Andrews, something which is against the dress code of tournament play.
Phil is playing The Open in … a t-shirt? pic.twitter.com/y8MXtbtBvzJuly 14, 2022