Phil Mickelson has said at length that he won’t bet on football this year, much less the Ryder Cup. social media posts On Monday, he said he had crossed the line from sobriety to addiction before, but “it wasn’t fun at all.”
“Money was never an issue because our financial security was never threatened, but I was so distracted that I couldn’t be with my loved ones. It caused a lot of harm,” Mickelson wrote in the post.
Mickelson’s public admission that he has a gambling problem comes after celebrity gambler Billy Walters wrote in his book that Mickelson has bet more than $1 billion over the past 30 years to play for Team USA. This comes more than a month after he wrote that he was about to bet $400,000 on the 2012 Ryder Cup. .
Mickelson denied placing any bets on the Ryder Cup, which begins next week outside of Rome.
Mr. Mickelson has remained relatively quiet since Mr. Walters went on a media tour in August for his book, “The Gambler: Secrets from a Life of Risk.” He returns to competition this week at the Saudi-backed LIV Golf in suburban Chicago.
Walters said he entered into a gambling partnership with Mickelson in 2008 that lasted until 2014.
Two years later, Walters was indicted in an insider trading case involving some of the stock information that prosecutors say Walters passed on to Mickelson. Mr. Walters never gave Mr. Mickelson any inside information, and he says he might have avoided prison if Mr. Mickelson had testified on his behalf.
Mickelson appears to be referring to Walters in his post.
“If you cross the line of sobriety and fall into addiction, please don’t confuse the people who helped you like me with your friends,” he wrote. “I hope you don’t have to deal with this difficult moment publicly and that others can benefit from you like I did.
“But, hopefully, you have a strong, supportive partner who is willing to help you when you’re your worst self and when you’re having your worst moments, like I am Amy. I hope,” he said of his wife.
“I couldn’t have gotten through this situation without her. I’m so grateful for her strength in helping me get through the many challenges we have in store for us.” Thanks to her love, support, and dedication, I am back on track to becoming the person I want to be.”
Mickelson previously talked about his gambling problem and said he had sought help. In his post, he said that his addiction has kept him from being around his loved ones.
“It affected those I care about in ways I didn’t realize or fully understand,” he wrote. “It’s like there’s a hurricane happening outside and I’m isolated in a shelter, unaware of what’s going on. When I get outside, there’s so much damage that I have to clean up. So I just wanted to go back inside and not deal with it.”
Mickelson, six-time major champion Who won the 2021 PGA Championship The 50-year-old will be absent from the Ryder Cup for the first time since 1993 as a player or vice-captain. He will participate in three more of his tournaments at LIV Golf this year.
“Now that I have recovered from my addiction, many years later with professional help and no gambling, I spend each day sitting quietly, being present in the moment, and feeling inner calm and peace. “Now I can do that,” Mickelson wrote. “We still have a lot to clear up with the people we love most, but we are taking it slow and doing the best we can.”
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