Mickelson confirms talks with Padres ongoing

Phil Mickelson misfired on his golf shot to win $1 million for charity at halftime of Monday night’s Chargers game, but he’s still on target to have a stake in the ownership of the Padres.

As he walked in a hallway of Qualcomm Stadium after his shot, Mickelson said of his possible relationship with his hometown baseball team, “We’ll hopefully have something here shortly to announce.”

All indications are that Mickelson is in the final stages of negotiations to come on board with the new ownership.

“There are a lot of little variables,” Mickelson said on Monday night. “It’s the timing of everything as it relates to my career, how that will work over time – how we’ll work through that and so forth. All of that stuff plays into the whole relationship. We just want to have a clear understanding.

“I’m really excited about working with (new owner) Peter Seidler and the O’Malley family. We understand each other’s concerns and work well together.”

Mickelson talked excitedly over the summer about becoming a part of the Padres, but when the purchase was finalized in late August, Mickelson’s name was not on the list of owners.
"We have a spot in our group for Phil and only Phil,” Seidler said at the time. “We expect that to be finalized in two weeks."

That was nearly six weeks ago, but Mickelson has been extremely busy, playing in the PGA Tour’s FedEx Cup playoffs and then the Ryder Cup.

Mickelson’s appearance at Qualcomm on Monday night was a thrill for the golfer who has won four majors in a Hall of Fame career. One of his sponsors, KPMG, arranged for him to try a single, 100-yard golf shot from one goal line to the other.

If he hit a circle that was 5 feet in diameter, Mickelson could have won $1 million for the First Book charity. There were other targets, too, but Mickelson’s shot with his 56-degree wedge flew the target long and right. The consolation prize was $50,000 to First Book, which will purchase 20,000 books with the gift.

“I think I had a little too much adrenaline,” Mickelson said. “I hit it really good. … I would love to have another chance at it.”

There was a pressure on Mickelson he hasn’t experienced anywhere else. His one shot was the focus of more than 60,000 fans and dozens of cameras. In the stands behind where he was hitting, San Diego PGA Tour players Chris Riley and Charley Hoffman stood up and playfully razzed Mickelson as he approached the shot.

“The 16th hole at the TPC Scottdale has nothing on this,” Mickelson said. “When I went out there to hit the shot and saw my picture on the (scoreboard) … This was awesome, so much fun. This was really cool.”

Source: UTSanDiego.com