Phil Mickelson
Phil Mickelson has revealed who he thinks is the greatest golfer of all time, and there is an incredible statistic that backs him up.
The six-time major winner is on the short list of golf’s all-time greats himself, but he named someone else at the top of the sport’s hierarchy.
Mickelson, known for his brash confidence, which sometimes verges on arrogance, made the claim in his own way. He was discussing one of the greatest moments and achievements in his esteemed career, but he did take the time to lay flowers at someone else’s feet.
Phil Mickelson says Tiger Woods is the greatest golfer of all time
On Grant Horvat’s YouTube channel, Mickelson said that his great rival, Tiger Woods, was the greatest golfer of all time.
He said, almost flippantly, “Obviously, his record is his record; he’s the greatest of all time. I’ve seen him do things with a golf ball that I’ve never seen anybody be able to do. His play in 2000 was indescribable, how good it was.”
The conversation was centred around Mickelson’s putter, called “Tiger Slayer” after the many times he defeated Woods with that flatstick in hand. Mickelson explained the origin of the name, and broke down his record with Woods over the years.
“2012 AT&T [National] is where my putter got the name,” he explained.
“I used that putter and I made everything. I shot 64, he shot 75, and that’s where it initially slayed the Tiger. Then it kept doing it.
“He owned me in the early part of his career, then in the second part, I owned him. After ‘07 I started working with Butch [Harmon] and started to do really well against him head-to-head.”
Harmon was Woods’ golf coach before working with Mickelson, and he worked wonders for both careers. According to the PGA Tour, Woods still holds the all-time edge over Mickelson 16-15-4, but with Tiger Slayer in hand, Mickelson certainly closed the gap.
An incredible Tiger Woods stat shows why he is the GOAT
Woods’ dominance in the early 2000s, especially, was unmatched. He won 14 majors between 1997 and 2009, his most successful era. The rest of the field couldn’t get close to him, and even when Woods was hurt, he won, like during the 2008 US Open.
Between those years, Woods had a cumulative score in majors of -134. Mickelson was the only player within 250 strokes of Woods, having shot +99. That’s a 235-shot difference between the best and second-best golfers of their era.
Mickelson made some ground back in the 2010s, when his rival’s performance level fell off despite Woods winning the 2018 Masters. But Woods’ run will be remembered forever as the most dominant a golfer has ever been.
