Phil: The Rip-Roaring (and Unauthorized!) Biography of Golf's Most Colorful Superstar

Alan Shipnuck's unauthorized biography of Phil Mickelson is an outstanding book of research. It took Shipnuck a long time to get to the point of writing a biography of one of golf's greatest legends. With the work he produces, it does not disappoint. Shipnuck is more than fair in his portrayal of Mickelson and his family. He shows us both sides of a life: the good and the bad of Phil Mickelson.First of all, Shipnuck let's us see Phil Mickelson in action as a person. He shows us a man who signs autographs endlessly for his fans ala Arnold Palmer. I think Phil modeled his on course and off course behavior with the fans after Arnold. He felt that having a crowd support him is better than the crowd being against him. Arnie had his "Army" and so did Phil. Phil also endeared himself to players on the PGA tour and many in the book sing his praises. However, there are those who would not. Phil can be offensive with his mouth often calling people by nicknames. Some are nice; others condescending. Phil showed himself to be a leader and a motivator. He showed himself to be highly motivated to win, and especially to win majors.Phil is shown to be a great husband when his wife, Amy, was stricken with cancer. His victory at the Masters in 2010 showed us that. He was incredibly supportive during the birth of their children.Phil and his family were shown to be charitable to many causes. Phil treated the people who worked for him at golf tournaments by tipping them generoursly. His counterpart, Tiger Woods, was considered to be cheap. It is well known. Phil helped families who suffered misfortunes. His family were generous to the community.On the other hand, Shipnuck has shown to us a "darker" side if you will of Phil Mickelson: his shady dealings with nefarious people and his penchant for gambling. We are all flawed. Phil is no exception. We learn of the dubious insider trading deal, his connection to bookies that were sleasebags ( one bilking Mickelson out of 500K), and gambling gambits that lost him millions of dollars. If one is making 50 million a year, what's a ten million dollar loss for four years in a row? But the more overriding concern of his gambling is the depth of the loss that none of us know about. Was there more than we know? Did he sell his Gulfstream airplane because he had money issues? Was Phil's overwhelming drive to win golf tournaments to pay back gambling debts or to make history? Why did he owe 900k to Jim "Bones" Mackay? Why did Phil not allow Jim to have the 18th hole flag of Phil's victories ( Phil manages to pay 800k to Jim and sent him 4 flags)? How can a golfer of his stature "owe" that much money to his caddie? Perhaps we will never know the full story about the gambling that Mickelson has done, and perhaps it is none of our business. And he is well known for relating his feelings about the taxes he has to pay in the State of California! Gee, I guess he did not have enough left over?Phil then lets his mouth get the better of him when he relates how he feels about the PGA Tour. He questions why a company with 800 million dollars in the bank is a charitable non-profit organization. He lets other things come out that were aired and he is immediately punished by his corporate sponsors. Sometimes it is best to leave things behind closed doors. In my readings, Phil has a lot of good points about the PGA tour that have already been modified. Larger amounts of money for winning tournaments has already happened in their response to players abandoning the tour for the richer Saudi League. The jury is still out about who is righter on the issue of Phil's complaints. Phil is a bold with his mouth as he is with his play on the golf course: both of these traits have cost him dearly but you have to admire a man with his courage.There was no doubt that Phil was driven to make golf history, but he had to fight Tiger Woods to make that history. Just ask any of those who played against Nicklaus what they had to do to beat the guy! There were several who did not back down. Phil's gambling style on the golf course cost him a number of majors and never being able to win the US Open is one of his greatest failures. He did lose because of himself a number of times when he missed putts he should not have and made shots that cost him dearly. We learn that he could not have done it any other way. I heartily disagee. A 4 iron, a five iron, a chip and two putts could have easily won the US Open at Winged Foot. His 6 runner up finishes were all his fault.After reading the book, I am a fan of Phil Mickelson for life. He has shown such courage and he has shown that his is just a human being like the rest of us. He has made his mistakes and perhaps he has not thought things through clearly but his outspoken comments are probably 100% accurate. I will cheer for him whenever I see him play. I cannot do the same for Tiger. That is a different story.

A good and very thoroughly researched account of Mickelson's career from childhood right up to the LIV controversy but I was surprised not to find more in it that I didn't already know. It's mainly a collection of anecdotes, quotes, and reports on significant tournaments. Understandable given the author's background as a journalist, but the result is a book that feels more like a very in-depth newspaper article than a biography. There is some good insight interspersed with the facts, but I'd have liked to see an additional chapter dedicated to Mickelson's personality, achievements, and place in the history of the game.On a side note, as a reader in Ireland, I find the cliché-heavy, insider-ish nature of American sportswriting irritating at times and this book is no different (e.g. repeated references to the Crosby Clambake - why not just call it the Pebble Beach Pro-Am at least once?). I guess that's a cultural difference and maybe a lack of knowledge on my part but it calls to mind the George Bernard Shaw quote about America and England being two countries separated by a common language.

Excellent book giving a great insight to one of golf's true superstars, the challenges he overcame, the riches he amassed. While his achievements and unique "go for it" playing style are legendary he has lived with demons throughout his life. The author gives the full story in a wonderful book.

I enjoyed reading about this complicated golfer in todays world. I’ve followed Phil for the entirety of his career. One minute I’m angry with him, the next, I applaud Phil for stepping out of the PGA zone to call them out. Looking forward to the next book. Would help him I he could control his Gambling.

Very interesting read. Mickleson has never been one of my favourite players, and the insight into his character confirmed to me why.