The top-five most gut-wrenching Phil Mickelson meltdowns

Phil Mickelson has never failed to entertain golf fans throughout his career.

Whether the six-time major champion who went pro in 1992 has been chasing down Tiger Woods as second fiddle in the golf world, winning titles in his own right, or failing in a devastating fashion at the last second, Mickelson’s career has been full of ups and downs.

While his most recent major title was the PGA Championship in 2021, Mickelson has generated headlines for his controversial decision to defect from the PGA Tour to the Saudi-backed LIV Golf tour in 2022 before the two warring tours merged in 2023.

But before that, Mickelson has delighted and frustrated fans with his uncanny ability to come oh-so-close to a major title and fall just short — particularly at the U.S. Open, where he’s finished as the runner-up a stunning six times.

Here are the five best Mickelson meltdowns.

Lightning Check: A Classic Overthinking Job

In hindsight, 2013 looks like a pretty good year for Phil Mickelson.

The legendary golfer rose back to the top of the golf world along with longtime rival Tiger Woods and even captured a major title — winning his first-ever British Open crown.

But there was one brutal moment that would surely stick with the golfer for years to come: blowing a chance to win the U.S. Open, which has evaded him for so long.

Mickelson had a busy week before his tee time at Merion Golf Club in Pennsylvania, flying to San Diego for his daughter’s graduation days before the opening round and only returning to Merion hours before his tee time.

Coming down the stretch on Sunday, Mickelson hit a miraculous shot from 76 yards out on hole No. 10 for an eagle.

But just three holes later on the par-3 13th hole, Mickelson sailed his shot over the green, and NBC cameras caught the golfer asking officials about lightning in the area, which likely led to him overthinking what should have been a simple shot.

Mickelson lost any shot he had at the lead and later characterized the defeat as a “heartbreak” while Justin Rose took home the trophy.

“This was my best chance of all of them because I was playing well, I had a golf course I really liked that I could play aggressive on a number of holes,” he said, red-eyed. “I felt like this was as good an opportunity as you could ask for and to not do it, it hurts.”

Not Yet! That ball’s still rolling

Not waiting for a golf ball to stop rolling is the type of gaffe you might expect from an amateur mini-golf player, not a six-time major champion.

But at the 2018 U.S. Open, Mickelson looked more like an amateur than someone with his type of pedigree.

On Mickelson’s 48th birthday, the ever-troubling U.S. Open was already slipping out of his grasp: he had bogeyed five of his previous eight holes at Shinnecock Hills as he lined up at the 13th hole.

When his 18-foot putt for bogey flew past the cup with no sign of stopping, Mickelson jogged along with it and committed a cardinal sin — hitting the ball while it was still moving.

He was assessed a two-stroke penalty for his mistake and scored a 10 on the hole, ultimately finishing 48th at the tournament.

One Little Pebble: How a Rock Stopped Mickelson

Shinnecock Hills has not been kind to Mickelson over the years.

Once again, the American champion found himself in a similar position: a chance to capture a U.S. Open title with only himself standing in the way in 2004.

But once more, he was thwarted.

The culprit this time? A singular pebble.

Tied with Retief Goosen as they approached the par-3 17th hole, Mickelson blasted a shot out of the front bunker when his ball did not check up.

Mickelson was attempting a difficult downhill putt that he put some speed on, and in an attempt to hit the par, he finished with a score of five in a disastrous moment that tanked his chances at the title, as Goosen stayed on par and remained ahead.

Though NBC analyst Johnny Miller theorized that a rock may have snuck in between Mickelson’s wedge and the ball, the theory was later confirmed by Mickelson’s playing partner, Fred Funk, who said he heard a nasty clank when Mickelson took his shot.

“I really don’t know what to say,” Mickelson said that day.

The 2006 Disaster at Winged Foot

There’s perhaps no Mickelson meltdown more infamous than the catastrophe at Winged Foot in 2006.

For much of the last round, Mickelson was pacing the field — until the 18th hole came around.

Mickelson sent a shot off of the concession tent with a driver, but his real mistake hadn’t yet come around.

He then attempted a shot with a very slim margin for error, trying to poke his ball through the trees toward the green.

When that didn’t work, Mickelson tried again, dooming his chances when the shot landed in a greenside bunker.

Mickelson finished that hole with a six, placing his head in his hands as the crushing result dawned upon him: he shot two over par on the last hole as Geoff Ogilvy took home the trophy.

“I am such an idiot,” he later said.

A Renaissance Denied

There would be no heroic return to form for Mickelson at the 2022 U.S. Open — unless you consider that form to be one beladen by meltdowns.

One week after a signing a $200 million deal to join LIV Golf, Mickelson tried to see if he could finally break through at the U.S. Open, and failed gloriously.

He hit 14 putts through six holes, including a disastrous sixth hole when he squandered a birdie opportunity with a four-putt showing.

Mickelson failed to make the cut and tied for 143rd place at the conclusion of the second round.

He even hit a spectator with an errant shot during the second round, which — if you hadn’t realized it yet — was as clear a signal as possible that he had passed his prime.