Phil Mickelson Biography

Facts | Childhood | College Golf | Professional Career | Family
Facts
Full Name:Philip Alfred Mickelson
Nickname:Lefty
Birth Date:June 16, 1970
Height:6ft 3in / 1,91m
Weight:200lbs / 91kg
Birthplace:San Diego, CA
Residence:Rancho Santa Fe, CA
Nationality:American
College:Arizona State University (Psychology, 1992)
Family:Wife: Amy (married since 1996), Children: Amanda (1999), Sophia Isabel (2001), Evan (2003)
Nationality:American
Attachment:Grayhawk Golf Club (Scottsdale, AZ)
Childhood
Phil Mickelson was born on June 16, 1970 in San Diego, CA to Phil Sr. and Mary. His parents already had one child, a girl named Tina. Phil�s younger brother Tim was to follow a few years later. Phil Mickelson Sr. had been a fighter pilot before retiring from the Navy and later moved on to fly commercial aircraft. Phil�s mother did work as a nurse and later ran an assisted living facility together with her husband.

The family later moved to Arizona where Phil spent parts of his youth. His parents introduced him to the game of golf at the age of only 18 months. While Phil is normally right-handed, he started to play golf left-handed by watching his dad's golf swing and mirroring it. His passion for the game became apparent when he tried to run away from home at the age of three because his parents did not think that he was old enough to join his father for a weekend golf game at the local public course. He played his first full-round of golf just about one year later.

As a junior golfer, Phil Mickelson won 34 San Diego County junior titles while working with teaching professional Dean Reinmuth.
College Golf
Phil graduated from the University of San Diego High School in 1988 and attended Arizona State University on a full golf scholarship. His collegiate golf career turned out to be nothing short of spectacular. During his four years at ASU, he won three individual NCAA Championships (1990-1992) and three consecutive Haskin Awards (1990-1992) as an outstanding collegiate golfer. During his four years as a Sun Devil, Phil earned first-team All-American honors and became only the second collegiate golfer to do so.

In 1990, Phil became the first left-handed golfer to win the US Amateur trophy. While still a student and amateur golfer at ASU, Phil Mickelson did win his first PGA Tour tournament, the Northern Telecom Open, in 1991 by a stroke from Tom Purtzer.
Professional Career
Phil turned pro at the age of 22 after graduating from the Arizona State University in 1992. So far in his professional career, Phil Mickelson has 36 tournament wins, the last one coming in March 2009 at the WGC - CA Championship at Doral. After being called the best golfer in the world without a major victory for years by the press, Phil won his first major tournament at the US Masters in 2004. Two more followed with the 2005 US PGA Championship at Baltusrol and the 2006 Masters.
Family
Phil married his girlfriend Amy - a former cheerleader for the Phoenix Suns basketball team - on November 16, 1996. The couple met in 1992 at Arizona State University and now live in Rancho Santa Fe, CA. Phil and Amy have three children: Evan, Sophia and Amanda. In May 2009 Amy Mickelson was diagnosed with breast cancer, prompting Phil to suspend his PGA Tour schedule indefinitely. He returned to the tour four weeks later at the St. Jude Classic after it had become clear that the disease was caught early and that no immediate treatment was required.