It’s fair to say that Rory McIlroy and Phil Mickelson are cast on opposite ends of the golf spectrum. One is envisioned to take the mantle forward once golf legend, Tiger Woods, decides to call it a day, while the other is expected to be the face of the controversial LIV Golf Series. However, this isn’t the first time these two have had differences of opinion. Apart from the engrossing contest on the golf course, McIlroy and Mickelson found themselves in a personal and ugly spat before the start of the Ryder Cup in 2014.

What happened between Rory McIlroy and Phil Mickelson at the 2014 Ryder Cup?

Ahead of the biennial event in Gleneagles, Scotland, McIlroy was engulfed in a legal battle with his former management group. The organization in question was Horizon Sports, with the company claiming that the four-time major championship winner had broken his contract that was due to run until 2017.

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Interestingly, McIlroy’s Ryder Cup teammate, Graeme McDowell, was also named in the lawsuit. This led to a series of questions on the matter, to which Phil Mickelson was ready with a tongue-in-cheek reply.

“Well, not only are we able to play together, we also don’t litigate against each other and that’s a real plus, I feel, heading into this week,” he replied. However, instead of throwing accusations across the table, McIlroy gave an alleviating response to the statement.

“I got a couple of jabs back at him at the gala dinner. I know Phil well and we had a couple of laughs about it. We took it well,” he said. “Myself and G-Mac [McDowell] confronted him at the gala dinner and I had a couple of goes. It was all good fun.”

“Rory and I are very comfortable with the situation at this point,” his teammate McDowell pipped in. “So did we bring up the FBI? We didn’t mention that at all! I don’t think they have any jurisdiction here in Scotland!” he added.

Did McIlroy and Mickelson face off in the Ryder Cup?

As things turned out, McIlroy was drafted for a fourball clash against Mickelson. The two were paired with current LIV Golfer, Sergio Garcia, and recently crowned 2022 ZOZO Championship winner, Keegan Bradley.

The morning contest was a healthy affair between the two sets of golfers, with all eyes focusing on the multiple major winners. Mickelson came into the tournament in dire form and practice, but came up exceptionally well alongside Bradley to secure a surprising win.

However, the joy was short-lived as Team Europe steam-rolled over their American counterparts with a 16.5 to 11.5 victory. The win was their third consecutive Ryder Cup win, while also defending their Medinah Club victory in 2012.