Ahead of the start of the LIV Golf season this year, fans were very excited to see Phil Mickelson in action. While his team, HyFlyers GC struggled last year, all eyes were on how exactly Mickelson would orchestrate his team’s comeback. Unfortunately, the reality has been far from that. At the beginning of the tournament, the LIV Golfer announced his initial absence and now, recent news has further made things difficult. 

“We are excited to have Wade join the team again in Hong Kong as he steps in for Phil. As a two-time winner of The Hong Kong Open, Wade brings a great deal of familiarity to Hong Kong Golf Club,” read an X update from the HyFlyers GC. 

Now, this comes as quite disappointing news for the fans. Initially, the golfer announced that he would be missing the first two LIV Golf events of the year. Mickelson also cited that he had to be with his family for an emergency health matter. Providing further details, the US professional golfer stated how he was eager to step back onto the greens. 

“I will not be able to participate in the first two LIV Events as Amy and I need to be present for a family health matter. I can’t wait to compete again and look forward to rejoining my teammates as soon as possible. In the meantime, Ollie Schniederjans will step in for me in Riyadh as I root on HyFlyers GC from afar,” wrote Mickelson. 

Thus, according to the plans, the Riyadh event and the tournament at The Grange Golf Club in Australia were the two events where Mickelson was slated to be absent. Now with Hong Kong being added to the list, it looks like the wait will be a long one for the fans. 

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Interestingly, last year, when he played in Hong Kong, Mickelson had a memorable time. Displaying a stellar golfing display, the US star clinched his best LIV Golf finish, ending third, just four shots behind the winner, Sergio Garcia. Since jumping ship from the PGA Tour back in 2022, this was the first time he had finished within the top 5. 

Notably, his team, the HyFlyers GC, too, secured a third-place finish, tying with Cameron Smith’s Ripper GC. The last time he had secured such great results was back in the 2023 Masters, as he shot 7-under 65 to finish second. Riding high on confidence, the US golfer wanted to add another feather to his cap. But alas, missing out on his favorite tournament this year, that dream is looking quite foggy.

Additionally, such an absence comes at a volatile moment for the PIF-backed league. With the likes of Patrick Reed and Brooks Koepka having left the league, it needs names like Mickelson to step up with a strong showing. Sadly, accusations of him being ignorant of his LIV Golf team have been circulating rapidly.

HyFlyers GC’s slump sparked criticism of Phil Mickelson’s priorities

While the recent past has not turned out to be exceptionally good for Mickelson on the professional front, his LIV Golf team, too, dealt with setbacks at the end of the 2025 season. When Mickelson joined the Saudi-backed league back in 2022, he had a vision that reflected not only in his gameplay but also in how he handled his team. 

However, in 2025, that narrative saw a change as his team, HyFlyers GC, constantly struggled on the greens. And that made golf experts point fingers at the captain. Some felt that Mickelson was more concerned about his Sable Offshore investment rather than the betterment of his team. 

Golf pundit of the No Laying Up podcast took a blatant dig at Mickelson and stated, “Shouldn’t he be managing the HyFlyers? If he spent an ounce of the effort that he has seemingly put into Sable on his own golf team, I feel like they’d be maybe a little bit better shape next year in the LIV season.”

Furthermore, the 2024 season, too, did not turn out particularly well for the HyFlyers GC team. That year, the team had only one podium finish. That slump continued for months. However, later in 2025, they improved and finished 5th in the LIV Golf Championship following a challenging season.