Pro Golfer Phil Mickelson Loses Another Corporate Endorsement Over Saudi Connection
The American Express dumped Mickelson and his foundation from a PGA event California after the pro golfer brushed off Saudi Arabia’s killing of Jamal Khashoggi.

Orlando Ramirez-USA TODAY Sports
The American Express is the latest major corporate sponsor to dump golfer Phil Mickelson and his foundation over remarks he called “reckless” about an opportunity to join a Saudi Arabia golf league. The 51-year-old legend, who has won six major championships including three Masters and two PGA titles, was removed from a PGA tour event in the California desert on Saturday which his charitable foundation was slated to host. Mickelson’s troubles began when he told a sports journalist that the Saudi group he was planning to collaborate with were “scary mother fuckers” but that he would do it anyway. “We know they killed [Jamal] Khashoggi and have a horrible record on human rights. They execute people over there for being gay,” Mickelson told the journalist who is writing a biography of the golfer. “Knowing all of this, why would I even consider it? Because this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to reshape how the PGA Tour operates.”
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