"I've tried to reach out, but he's gone dark," DeChambeau said.
"There's no contact."
Mickelson is not playing the Masters this week, the first time
he is missing the major since 1994. The six-time major champ has
not competed, appeared in public or posted on social media since
Feb. 22, when he issued a lengthy mea culpa addressing divisive
comments made to author Alan Shipnuck about a Saudi-backed golf
league.
"The past 10 years I have felt the pressure and stress slowly
affecting me at a deeper level," the 51-year-old wrote at the
end of his statement. "I know I have not been my best and
desperately need some time away to prioritize the ones I love
most and work on being the man I want to be."
Mickelson won the Masters in 2004, 2006 and 2010.
DeChambeau, the 2020 U.S. Open champion, was said to be
considering joining the so-called Super Golf League. A report
said he'd been offered a $135 million signing bonus to join the
league, which he has denied.
Plans for the league have since fallen apart. LIV Golf
Investments CEO Greg Norman instead announced an eight-event
series dubbed the "LIV Golf Invitational" that will play
exclusive tournaments in London, the U.S. and parts of Asia.
DeChambeau, who missed almost two months of competition this
season with a torn labrum and a fractured bone near his left
wrist, told reporters in Augusta that he is feeling 80 percent
this week. But he didn't want to miss one of the biggest
tournaments of the year.
"(Doctors) recommended that I don't come back for a while,"
DeChambeau said. "They said if you go out and hit golf balls and
you feel somewhat comfortable, you consider it, and they are
like, you should really let it heal.
"And even (coach Chris Como) has told me, you probably shouldn't
play, even though he wants me to play obviously, right. But he's
really looking out for my best interests for the future. I'm
like, man, this only comes around once a year, and I've got to
give this a go."
[© 2022 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.]
This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content. |
|