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Sam Ryder — and his joggers — during Saturday’s final round of the Farmers Insurance Open.
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Phil Mickelson, who’s not been shy to show his calves, is no fan of pants that show ankles.
To begin, the six-time major champion had been a big name at this week’s PGA Tour event, the now-named Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines. It’s in San Diego, his hometown. At the age of 17, Mickelson made his first PGA Tour start at Torrey, via Monday qualifying. He won his first Tour event at Torrey, one of three victories at the public track. He would have been welcomed back.
Of course, you know what’s happened: The PGA Tour and DP World Tour are entering their second calendar year of a fight with LIV Golf that has seen LIV offer guaranteed money to Tour players, the Tour create changes in response, the sides take each other court — and Mickelson perhaps be the biggest face of the Saudi-backed series. As a result, you may never see him in a Tour event again.
But a man can tweet.
And this week, with Torrey likely on his mind, he unsurprisingly has. Mickelson started Monday. The Caddie Network account shared a photo of a young Tiger Woods holding a trophy next to what appears to be a tournament official, with this caption: “Torrey Pines has this picture hanging in their coastal San Diego clubhouse. Any idea who it is?”
Mickelson weighed in.
“No idea the guy on the right,” he wrote. “The guy on the left is “Brownie” I believe John Brown but only ever called him Brownie. He was the godfather of San Diego junior golf and one of the kindest souls who has ever lived.”
He wasn’t done. Later Tuesday, the Fore Play account shared a video of the rough at Torrey, along with these words: “Spotters gonna be the real MVPs this week.” And Mickelson weighed in again.
“Oh dear,” he wrote. “Not that I have a choice But probably best I sit this one out.”
And that brings us to Saturday. And the PGA Tour. And skin.
Sam Ryder started the final round at the Farmers with a two-shot advantage. And then there were his pants. They were purple-ish, and they were tight around his ankles. He was wearing joggers. And Mickelson — whose calves, Google will show you, have been described near infinitely — weighed in.
“The Tour doesn’t allow shorts but does allow this weeks leader to wear joggers with ankle socks?” Mickelson wrote. “Showing 4 inches of ankle? I’m no fashion guy, never will be, but there are some things I won’t ever understand.”
He then doubled down. In response to the tweet, pro Erik van Rooyen — who also wear joggers — shared an older photo of Mickelson wearing a dress-like shirt while playing and wrote: “Hello Philip I’ll just leave this here.”
Two minutes later, Mickelson had an answer.
“As I stated, never been a fashion guy.”
