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The Players Championship might be the only PGA Tour event where you can bet on whether or not a golfer will hit their ball into the water, which in turn makes it one of my favorites. The tournament kicked off yesterday and saw Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson paired with each other for the first time in four years— but that storyline was overshadowed by something much more important: Mickelson wearing a button-up shirt on the golf course.
The unofficial rules of golf dictate you wear either a polo or a cardigan complemented by a sharp pair of slacks while on the course, but Mickelson decided to shun tradition and don a dress shirt when walking the links at Sawgrass on Thursday. He recently partnered with Mizzen and Main and agreed to wear their attire on the course as part of the deal. The reaction to his taste in fashion has been fairly split, but there are at least a few people out there who can respect the vision.
Fan between first green and second tee tells Phil Mickelson he’s digging the long-sleeve shirt. Phil responds “I had to dress it up a little bit around here.”
— Mark Long (@APMarkLong) May 10, 2018
Regardless of how you feel about the look, you have to respect Mickelson for somehow managing to make golf stuffier than it already is. I’ll admit I was initially a hater after hearing his motivation for the partnership, which might be the most golf quote in history:
Press release on Mickelson's new dress shirt endorsement deal includes a Peak Phil quote: "I was waiting to find the perfect apparel partner that allowed me to move from the board room to the golf course." pic.twitter.com/yutCW48QWU
— Will Gray (@WillGrayGolfbet) May 10, 2018
However, after hearing what he said about the shirt after yesterday’s round, I’ve had a sudden change of heart. There aren’t many things I respect more than someone who is willing to embrace their flaws, and that’s exactly what Mickelson did when he revealed the real reason he’s rocking the button-up:
Phil Mickelson on wearing a button-down dress shirt:
“Nobody does kind of slightly overweight middle-aged guy better than me — and this says exactly who I am.”
— Jason Sobel (@JasonSobelTAN) May 11, 2018
I can’t wait for Phil to ink a deal with a company that makes wallets capable of holding way too many things.