Phil Mickelson Loses to Aussie Amateur
Phil Mickelson lost his first wager with Ryan Ruffels – will there be a double-or-nothing comeback at the Farmers?
We all know how much Phil Mickelson loves to bet on golf. The tales are legion – like the time Mickelson “enticed” or badgered Nick Watney into a practice round wager at the 2010 Open Championship, and his 1998 practice round bet with Tiger Woods before the Nissan Open – and they generally involve Lefty walking away with the cash.
This story has a different ending. Lefty loses!
Mickleson believes, as do I, that these little on-course wagers are just part of the sporting life. But his most recent wager didn’t quite end up as he’d expected.
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The Sydney Morning Herald’s Matt Murnane reports that Lefty was trying to help out his brother, Tim, who’s the head coach at Arizona State, recruit Ryan Ruffels, a 17-year old Aussie amateur. The two were playing an early-morning practice round, a follow-up to the recruiting call in which Mickelson had extolled the advantages of an Arizona State collegiate career as a stepping stone to the pros.
As they headed for the first tee – so Ruffels reports – Mickelson said to him, “I don’t wake up this early to play for any less than $2500,” and then sweetened the deal with 2:1 odds and the agreement that Ruffels could defer paying the wager until he turned pro.
Who could turn down that kind of bet? Certainly not a rising young star like Ryan Ruffels who’s getting backstopped by Jason Day and Geoff Ogilvy.
So this is how Ruffels described that round with Lefty:
"“I was a few down through nine but then I birdied six of my last seven to win by one shot and took his money, so that was pretty cool.”"
Mickelson lost the bet and he also lost the recruit for Arizona State. Ruffels, the son of two tennis pros, announced at Victoria Golf Club that he’s turned pro.
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The teenager is getting some solid back stage guidance. He’s already signed with the management team that tends to Jason Day and fellow Australian star Marc Leishman and he’s joined Nike’s “pro team.” I astually think it’s pretty cool to have an equipment sponsor before you have a tour card!
Like that other new freelance pro on the scene, Bryson DeChambeau, Ruffels will get 7 sponsor invites to try to qualify for full status on the PGA TOUR. Look for him to debut at the Farmers Insurance Open and follow it up with the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am.
Read more about Bryson DeChambeau’s journey to the pro circuit
Jason Day’s the defending champion at the Farmers and I expect Mickelson will be in the field. I wonder if he’ll be able to entice Ruffels into a double or nothing practice round bet? If he does, I wonder who will win it?
My colleague Matt Cochran is probably going to have to revise his list of the top 10 young guns on the PGA TOUR before the season ends!