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Phil Mickelson is excited to return to the Augusta National Golf Course. Ever since he joined LIV Golf, Mickelson has been subjected to criticism from fans. Moreover, he was barred from playing on the PGA Tour. Fortunately, the American golfer received an invitation to compete in the Masters, which is scheduled to take place next month.
In a recent interview, Mickelson was asked about the expectations of the LIV golfers playing on the PGA Tour. In response, he said:
"No expectation, really. We are just looking forward to playing, competing, be part of it. People playing, competing in Masters are friends for decades and I am looking forward to seeing them again."
The Masters is scheduled to be held from April 6-9 at the Augusta National Golf Club. However, ahead of the major tournament, Phil Mickelson will join Scottie Scheffler at the Champions dinner, which is slated to take place on April 4.
The dinner is already making headlines as fans are worried that the LIV golfers and PGA Tour players will throw shade at one another. Since the inception of the Saudi-backed series, golfers have been constantly criticizing one another.
Interestingly, Tiger Woods, who vociferously ill-talked about LIV Golf, will also be part of the Champions dinner. However, he has already assured everyone that the dinner will be focused on last year's champion Scottie Scheffler.
"We, as a whole, need to honor Scottie" - Tiger Woods on the Masters dinner
The Masters dinner is an annual dinner held at the Augusta National Clubhouse ahead of a major tournament. This year's dinner is pretty special as the LIV golfers and PGA Tour players will come together.
Earlier this year, when Rory McIlroy fought Patrick Reed in Dubai, it gave rise to millions of questions among fans. However, Tiger Woods had a better reply and confessed that the dinner will only be focused on Scottie Scheffler.
In his interview last month, the five-time Masters winner revealed:
“We, as a whole need to honor Scottie. Scottie’s the winner, it’s his dinner. So making sure that Scottie gets honored correctly but also realizing the nature of what has transpired and the people that have left, just where our situations are either legally, emotionally, there’s a lot there.”
Woods is not the only one who believes the dinner should be focused on Scheffler. The 2007 Masters winner, Zach Johnson, also echoed the legendary golfer's words, explaining:
"I’ve had a couple of conversations with the powers that be. We all look through the lens of what that evening is established to be and what it forever is going to be and the mere fact that we are honoring another man. That’s going to be my outlook and how I’m going to approach it. "
Scottie Scheffler also confessed that he has no issues with the LIV golfers and that they are also his friends. He said:
"Just because guys joined another tour doesn’t mean I’m not friends with them anymore and think differently of them as people. They are still my friends and we are all just gonna hang out and have a good time.”
