{"id":28808,"date":"2023-09-26T11:53:24","date_gmt":"2023-09-26T15:53:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/idolchatter\/?p=28808"},"modified":"2023-09-26T15:22:41","modified_gmt":"2023-09-26T19:22:41","slug":"pro-golfer-phil-mickelson-opens-up-about-his-gambling-addiction","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/idolchatter\/2023\/09\/pro-golfer-phil-mickelson-opens-up-about-his-gambling-addiction.html","title":{"rendered":"Pro Golfer Phil Mickelson Opens Up About His Gambling Addiction"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure id=\"attachment_28820\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-28820\" style=\"width: 768px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><a href=\"https:\/\/wp-media.beliefnet.com\/sites\/87\/2023\/09\/Phil-Mickelson-Gambling-v04-scaled.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-28820\" src=\"https:\/\/wp-media.beliefnet.com\/sites\/87\/2023\/09\/Phil-Mickelson-Gambling-v04-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"768\" height=\"576\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-28820\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">L.E.MORMILE \/ Shutterstock.com | Inset: philmickelson \/ Instagram<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Pro-golfer Phil Mickelson recently owned up to his gambling addiction after it was rumored he lost more than $1 billion over the last three decades. The three-time Masters champ opened up about the struggle in a lengthy post to X, formerly known as Twitter.<\/p>\n<p>He wrote, \u201cMost of you will enjoy this football season with moderation while having lots of fun and entertainment. The fantasy leagues will provide banter amongst friends, and money won or lost betting won\u2019t affect you. I won\u2019t be betting this year.\u201d The 53-year-old explained that his addiction never left him financially destitute, but he was emotionally unavailable to those for whom he cared most.<\/p>\n<p>He wrote that the bad habit left him so distracted that he couldn\u2019t present with the ones he loved and caused much harm. Mickelson\u2019s admission comes a little over a month after gambler Billy Walters shared in his book that Mickelson has bet north of $1 billion over the last 30 years, including allegedly wanting to put a $400,000 bet on the 2012 Ryder Cup while playing for Team USA. Mickelson denied the latter allegation.<\/p>\n<p>He responded via a statement to <em>Golf Digest,<\/em> saying, \u201cI never bet on the Ryder Cup. While it is well known that I always enjoy a friendly wager on the course, I would never undermine the integrity of the game.\u201d Now in recovery, Mickelson credits his wife Amy for being a \u201cstrong and supportive partner\u201d as he works to handle his addiction. He also warned against those who turn to those they think are friends but, in reality, are just enabling destructive behaviors.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">Most of you will enjoy this football season with moderation while having lots of fun and entertainment. The fantasy leagues will provide banter amongst friends and money won or lost betting won\u2019t affect you. I wont be betting this year because I crossed the line of moderation and\u2026<\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Phil Mickelson (@PhilMickelson) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/PhilMickelson\/status\/1703838200618516716?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">September 18, 2023<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>He wrote, \u201cIf you ever cross the line of moderation and enter into addiction, hopefully, you won\u2019t confuse your enablers as friends like I did. Hopefully, you won\u2019t have to deal with these difficult moments publicly so others can profit off you like I have.\u201d Mickelson continued, \u201cHopefully, you will have a strong and supportive partner who is willing to help you through being your worst self and through your worst moments like I have in Amy. She has loved me and supported me through my darkest and most difficult times.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The golfer added, \u201cI couldn\u2019t have gotten through this without her. I\u2019m so grateful for her strength in helping us get through the many challenges I\u2019ve created for us. Because of her love, support, and commitment, I\u2019m back on track to being the person I want to be.\u201d Going through counseling and saying \u201cno\u201d to gambling, Mickelson explained, has allowed him the freedom \u201cto sit still, be present in the moment and live each day with an inner calm and peace.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He wrote, \u201cI still have a lot of cleaning up to do with those I love the most, but I\u2019m doing it slowly and as best I can.\u201d Phil Mickelson should be commended for coming clean about his gambling addiction and attempting to repair relationships with his loved ones. Hopefully, Mickelson\u2019s admission will help others through their addiction troubles.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Pro-golfer Phil Mickelson recently owned up to his gambling addiction after it was rumored he lost more than $1 billion over the last three decades. The three-time Masters champ opened up about the struggle in a lengthy post to X, formerly known as Twitter. He wrote, \u201cMost of you will enjoy this football season with&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":657,"featured_media":28820,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fbia_status":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[3630,6,7,10],"tags":[5855,1404,607],"class_list":["post-28808","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-athletes","category-celebrities","category-entertainment","category-sports","tag-gambling-addiction","tag-golf","tag-phil-mickelson"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.9 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Pro Golfer Phil Mickelson Opens Up About His Gambling Addiction<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"In a recent post to X, pro golfer Phil Mickelson opened up about his gambling addiction, sharing how it affected his family and loved ones.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" 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