Phil Mickelson given unsurprising reception at The Open after LIV Golf defection

Phil Mickelson returned to The Open (Image: Getty Images)

LIV Golf Phil Mickelson has praised the warm reception he's received from The Open Championship crowd at Royal Troon this week. Mickelson famously lost to Henrik Stenson in a thrilling Open battle back in 2016 at Troon.

Now, eight years later, he's back on the Ayrshire track for the first time since his runner-up finish and has nothing but praise for the Scottish crowd after making the cut on Friday.

"People have been great, yeah," he remarked. "Look, they're always great out here. They're always respectful of everybody in the game, and they've been respectful to every player, and they were great today, and they've been great all week and everywhere."

Despite playing his opening two rounds in five-over-par with rounds of 73 and 74 on Thursday and Friday, Mickelson secured his spot for the weekend. Although his scoring didn't put him in contention on the leaderboard, the six-time major champion was satisfied with his performance.

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"I've played well this week, even though I have not scored well. I haven't saved the shots around the greens that I usually do. I've hit a lot of good shots, though. I've hit a lot of really good-quality shots and I've played some really good golf," he said, reflecting on his historically strong short game.

Phil Mickelson sits at six-over-par after three rounds of The Open Championship (Image: getty)

This week, however, he confessed that his short game has been his downfall. The HyFlyers captain asserted: "I haven't scored the way I wanted to because my short game around the greens has not been as sharp as it needs to be to score on this golf course."

On Saturday, the 54-year-old delivered an impressive performance at the tournament. Blessed by gentle winds and warmer weather which softened the challenging Scottish links, Mickelson managed to get five birdies throughout his third round.

This included three in his final four holes, a commendable finish that displayed his LIV membership level skills.

Tiger Woods, Mickelson's long-standing adversary, couldn't make the cut and had to conclude his week prematurely after posting a score of 14-over-par for the tournament at the end of the second round. The PGA Tour-LIV controversy of recent years seems to have put Mickelson and Woods on opposite sides.

However, things looked peaceful between the two rivals during the current week when they practiced alongside each other on Royal Troon's driving range. Describing their encounter, Mickelson shared: "We said hi. Yeah, we said hi, but we were both preparing. It's not like we're going to sit there and chat.But we said hello, yeah."

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When asked if he and Woods could help reunite the world of professional golf, Mickelson downplayed his role in the discussions. "Look, I don't know about that stuff," he stated.

"I'm not involved. I'm not sitting in those rooms. I am enjoying where I'm at and what I'm doing and playing. I'll let other people figure that stuff out."

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Phil Mickelson given unsurprising reception at The Open after LIV Golf defection

Phil Mickelson given unsurprising reception at The Open after LIV Golf defection

Phil Mickelson given unsurprising reception at The Open after LIV Golf defection

Phil Mickelson given unsurprising reception at The Open after LIV Golf defection

Phil Mickelson given unsurprising reception at The Open after LIV Golf defection