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The rivalry between Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods used to be a headline topic back in the day. Ten years ago, Lefty once sat with CBS, following the 2014 PGA Championship, and made an admission about the Cypress Native.
The 96th PGA Championship was played that year at the iconic Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville, Kentucky. Things were not going well for Woods in 2014. The golfer's run that year was interrupted by deliberate injuries, a struggle with form, and missed cuts.
Phil Mickelson and Woods were both running for the title that year at PGA Championship. Woods missed the 2014 Masters Tournament due to undergoing a microdisectomy on March 31.
The major tournament in August 2014 saw the legendary golfer miss the cut with a total of 148 (74-74). Mickelson, in his interview with reporter Norah O'Donnell, talked about Woods:
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"We both have had an off year. He's been injured. I had some struggles early on. It's been the worst year of my career and it happens. Is it painful to see the injuries that he's had?"
While talking about Woods' performance and form in the 2014 PGA Championship, Lefty commented:
"It was painful for me to watch at the PGA Championship. I didn't see him struggling with the injury per se. I saw him struggling with his game and I think it was due to the fact he couldn't work on his game because of injury."
Phil Mickelson showcased an incredible run at the PGA Championship that year. The golfer secured the runner-up spot on the major leaderboard, missing the title to Rory McIlroy by a one-stroke margin.
Mickelson scored a total of 15-under par 269 after 72 holes at Valhalla Golf Club. His overall score stood at 69-67-67-66, and Phil holed four birdies while playing on the front nine.
When Phil Mickelson struggled with his performance in 2014
2014 was overall a hard time for fans. It was the first PGA Tour season since 1995 where the Woods-Mickelson duo were absent from their place of rivalry.
Although Lefty talked about Tiger Woods' problems in the 2014 PGA Championship, the year was full of inconsistency and close calls for Phil Mickelson. The six-time major champion missed the cut at the 2014 Masters Tournament for the first time in 1997.
The prestigious U.S. Open, which still remains as the final leg of his career grand slam journey, was also a disappointment for Mickelson in 2014. At Pinehurst No. 2, the golfer ended the major by tying for 28th place on the tournament leaderboard.
In the Open Championship at Royal Liverpool, Mickelson finished in T23, marking another disappointment in his major run in 2014. Throughout the year, Lefty was winless on the PGA Tour, which was quite rare for him.
Mickelson's lone top 10 came from the T2 at the 2014 PGA Championship, where he missed his sixth major title to McIlroy. The golfer suffered from inconsistency, especially in putting.
