Just a Number 

Nicknamed Lefty, Phil Mickelson is a golfer who’s attracted a strong following based on his iconic play as well as his unforgettable personality. He’s known primarily for the skills that have helped him take home 44 event titles in the PGA Tour, which includes five major championships, three Masters titles, one PGA Championship, and one Open Championship.

However, Mickelson now stands out given his age on the putting greens—and that’s a high compliment. Throughout the sport of golf, many professionals are able to continue playing at a high level unlike their pro-league counterparts in, say, the NHL or MLB.

In fact, the likelihood of star players continuing their professional career well into their 50s is so high that the PGA Tour has a separate branch for these athletes: PGA Tour Champions. This is a professional senior golf tour that’s fully regulated as a branch of the PGA Tour, where players continue to battle it out for hefty purse prizes. 

It should come as no surprise that Mickelson, who’s approaching his 50^th birthday in June, isn’t the oldest professional golfer to keep playing (and winning) well into his later years. In fact, the likes of Sam Snead, Davis Love III, Fred Funk, and Craig Stadler are all PGA Tour alumni who took titles past the age of 50. In fact, Mickelson remains a favorite amongst analysts as well as pundits looking to bet on main golf events, especially given his recent title-grabbing performance at the 2019 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.

The Recent Years

Though Mickelson is signed on to host an upcoming event, The American Express Golf Tournament (formerly known as the Bob Hope Classic), he’s also made sure to keep his play sharp.

In fact, only three years ago, at age 47, Mickelson was pleased with his play at the WGC Mexico Championship. During this tournament, Mickelson faced off against Justin Thomas, a golfer half his age, and seemed to make a show of dominating Thomas.

The big question coming up as Mickelson’s 50^th birthday isn’t whether or not the 44-time PGA Tour winner has the chops to continue on the putting greens. The question is actually whether or not he should move to the PGA Tour Champions league.

Normally, the criteria that determine a move from the PGA Tour to its Champions counterpart isn’t age. While the Champions Tour is only open to those aged 50 or above, it’s not uncommon for top athletes to keep playing in the PGA Tour.

In fact, golfer Tom Watson competed in the 2009 Open Championship despite being a Championship Tour candidate. Aged 59 years, many expected this to be the last run for Watson, but, in the end, he was one putt away from taking the Championship. His advice consisted of two points: competitiveness and clubhead speed. So long as a player has both, there’s no need to switch to the PGA Tour Championship.

Sure, Mickelson may be expected to support the senior circuit with some appearances and, certainly, some kind words, but he won’t be shoehorned into an inferior competition. After all, Mickelson’s got enough flashy shirts to compete for another decade and pretend he’s in his 40s.

Staying Sharp: Phil’s Way

Many fans and pundits may expect Mickelson to emphasize wit to stay sharp, especially considering the popular memes that have been circulating lately with the caption ‘What will Phil do next?’

But for all the antics this player tends to entertain, both on and off the course, he’s got more than his lefty swing down pat… or, rather than down pat, the swing he’s purposefully kept long, loose, and wildly unpredictable.

First, Mickelson emphasizes his hand technique rather than his body technique. That isn’t to say that the pro hasn’t spent countless hours perfecting his full-body stance—just that he prefers to focus on his hands, and believes this is the crutch for a strong swing.

Mickelson is also a huge proponent of mental visualization. Not only does he consider physical rehearsal important, but he also recommends that players visualize the game mentally before it’s time to take to the putting greens.

The name Arnold Palmer is one of the most iconic in the entire sports world.  Even after his passing in 2016, his brand continued to amass a fortune which led Arnold Palmer’s net worth to a figure most of us just can’t comprehend.  “The King” won 62 PGA Tour events, featuring four wins at The Masters, and is a Hall of Fame golfer.

How Much Money Did Arnold Palmer Make?

There are many reports out there, but the one that caught my eye was this report stating that his estate was worth an estimated $875 million.  The only person in his orbit from the golf world is the wealth of Tiger Woods, who is still out there earning and holding a massive amount of money, even despite a very public, expensive divorce.

The best part about Arnold Palmer was that his legacy consists of being a great golfer, but additionally he’s just a tremendous human being.  He was very involved with sports marketing, and helped found The Golf Channel, something that has brought a lot of new eyeballs on the sport and really garnered new viewers as well as servicing golf nuts across the globe with content.  Palmer also designed over 300 golf courses across the world, and used his name in deals to do beverages, apparel, and other items.

While he played golf before the prize pools started to become incredibly lucrative, he amassed $3.6 million in earnings on the PGA Tour and Champions Tour, but thankfully for him, he had an incredible nose for business and used his name to earn endorsements, guest appearances, and licensing to achieve a crazy amount of wealth.  If you adjust his earnings for inflation, his estate would be $1.4 billion!

His estate made over $40 million in the 12 months after his death in 2016.  His brand, like the Jordan Brand, is eternally earning respect and worth something.  

Out of celebrities who have passed away, only Michael Jackson has earned more money.  That, to me, shows you how big the Arnold Palmer brand is.

Arnold Palmer Golf Apparel

A lot of the income comes from over 400 stores that sell his branded apparel in Asia.  Other markets are on the radar over there, such as Vietnam, and Thailand.  There are agreements with 39 licensees with the estate of Arnold Palmer.

Arnold Palmer Beverages

Of course, many people know of the famous Arnold Palmer drink, which is a concoction of ice tea and lemonade.  This officially launched in 2001, and AriZona Beverages made 500 million cans of this drink just last year, focusing on the 13 to 35 year olds who drink this refreshing beverage.  It’s also said that the Palmer name is often thought of by associating it to the drink, and not his play on the golf course.  (Mostly because he was before most people’s time.)

MillerCoors now offers a spiked version of this beverage.  

Arnold Palmer’s net worth of his estate continues to grow, thanks to deals with MasterCard and Rolex as well.  It’s amazing what his brand was able to do over the years, and even more impressive as to what it continues to produce for the late, great golf icon.