Phil Mickelson To Miss 2026 Masters With Family Health Issue

Phil Mickelson at LIV Golf Hong Kong — This will be the first Masters played without Phil Mickelson or Tiger Woods in the field since 1994

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Phil Mickelson will not play in this year's Masters as he takes an "extended" break from golf to deal with an ongoing family health matter.

The 55-year-old was missing from the field for the opening four events of the new LIV Golf season, and only made his first start of the year in South Africa last month.

The HyFlyers GC captain first spoke about the issue back in January, which he's only ever described as a family health matter.

Mickelson sat out of the LIV Golf season opener in Riyadh, before also missing tournaments in Adelaide, Hong Kong and Singapore before finishing 48th in his debut in Steyn City in South Africa.

It was unclear if he'd play in The Matsers, which runs from April 9-12, but in a social media post just a week before the first round tees off he gave us the answer.

And Lefty said the health problem would require him to not only miss the tournament but also take a long break from the game.

"Unfortunately, I will not play in the Masters tournament next week and will be out for an extended period of time as my family continues to navigate a personal health matter," Mickelson wrote.

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"I have great respect for Augusta National Golf Club and it is definitely the most special week of the year. I wish everyone the best of luck and will be watching."

Mickelson was the low amateur at Augusta National in the 1991 Masters before making his professional debut in the 1993 tournament.

He returned for the 1995 Masters where he finished T7 and then made 27 consecutive trips down Magnolia Lane, claiming the Green Jacket in 2004, 2006 and 2010.

Mickelson missed the 2022 Masters during the fallout from his move to LIV Golf, but returned in style in 2023 when finishing joint second behind Jon Rahm.

With such an affinity with Augusta it's obviously a serious problem Mickelson is dealing with at home and the golfing world is hoping that it's something his family can overcome.

Paul Higham is a sports journalist with over 20 years of experience in covering most major sporting events for both Sky Sports and BBC Sport. He is currently freelance and covers the golf majors on the BBC Sport website. Highlights over the years include covering that epic Monday finish in the Ryder Cup at Celtic Manor and watching Rory McIlroy produce one of the most dominant Major wins at the 2011 US Open at Congressional. He also writes betting previews and still feels strangely proud of backing Danny Willett when he won the Masters in 2016 - Willett also praised his putting stroke during a media event before the Open at Hoylake. Favourite interviews he's conducted have been with McIlroy, Paul McGinley, Thomas Bjorn, Rickie Fowler and the enigma that is Victor Dubuisson. A big fan of watching any golf from any tour, sadly he spends more time writing about golf than playing these days with two young children, and as a big fair weather golfer claims playing in shorts is worth at least five shots. Being from Liverpool he loves the likes of Hoylake, Birkdale and the stretch of tracks along England's Golf Coast, but would say his favourite courses played are Kingsbarns and Portrush.

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