Does Phil Mickelson still gamble? Golfer's complete history with gambling explored

Phil Mickelson is a notorious gambler. He recently admitted, following his leap to the Saudi Arabian-backed LIV Golf league, that he's been struggling with gambling. He has been a gambler for a very long time.

Many people gamble, especially athletes. It can be a very fun past time and it can also be very profitable. However, there is a danger in it. It's easy to make poor decisions and addictions can form.

That seems to be what the famous golfer Mickelson has dealt with. He told Sports Illustrated:

“My gambling got to a point of being reckless and embarrassing. I had to address it. And I’ve been addressing it for a number of years. And for hundreds of hours of therapy. I feel good where I’m at there. My family and I are and have been financially secure for some time."

He reportedly lost around $40 million in gambling over a four-year span. Mickelson added:

“Gambling has been part of my life ever since I can remember. But about a decade ago is when I would say it became reckless. It’s embarrassing. I don’t like that people know. The fact is I’ve been dealing with it for some time."

He also added, per Golf.com:

"Amy has been very supportive of it and with me and the process. We’re at a place after many years where I feel comfortable with where that is. It isn’t a threat to me or my financial security. It was just a number of poor decisions.”

Mickelson said he loves gambling competitions, but that there are negative aspects of it that don't exist in golf:

“On the golf course, it’s creating competition. But it’s the anxiety, the other things that come across with gambling off the course and addiction off the course that I really needed to address."

It's been a long struggle with gambling, but the legendary golfer hesitated to say that he has quit. He said these things several months ago but didn't confirm he had stopped gambling.

Even the fact that he insisted it wasn't a financial threat despite supposedly losing so much money might suggest he's not done gambling in recent times.

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Why did Phil Mickelson abandon the PGA Tour?

Mickelson was about to join LIV Golf when he opened up about his gambling addiction. At the time, and even still, it was a very controversial decision.

LIV Golf Invitational - Portland - Round One

They are funded by Saudi Arabians, who largely have a poor track record with human rights. Mickelson seems to know that, but he doesn't care all that much.

According to the aforementioned source Yahoo! Sports, he is willing to look past the issues:

“They’re scary m***********s to get involved with. They killed Khashoggi and have a horrible record on human rights. They execute people over there for being gay. Knowing all of this, why would I even consider it? Because this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to reshape how the PGA Tour operates.”

It is also true that the golfer earned a $200 million signing bonus for joining, which doesn't hurt.

If you use any of the above quotes, please credit Yahoo! Sports, Sports Illustrated, Golf.com and H/T Sportskeeda.