Who knows if Phil Mickelson will win the U.S. Open this weekend, but he's definitely in the running for Father of the Year honours. Seriously, if they gave out a trophy for Father's Day, Phil the Thrill would already be hoisting it.
The 42-year-old golfer skipped practice at Merion Golf Club, in Pennsylvania, to fly home to San Diego to attend his daughter's Grade 8 graduation ceremony.
It's been pouring at Merion, the site of this year's open, all week, which bumped up Mickelson's timing.
"I was scheduled to return to San Diego after my 2:30 press conference Tuesday. I came back Monday," he said in a statement. "My daughter Amanda is speaking at her eighth grade graduation ceremony and I always planned on being here for that, but since it was raining so much Monday and we didn't know if we'd even be able to play a sloppy course, I came home last night to practice in great weather on my range and greens. I'll be ready to go Thursday."
With the ceremony on Wednesday and a tee time at 7:11 a.m. back in Pennsylvania on Thursday, Mickelson was clearly willing to sacrifice a well-rested beginning to a major tournament in order to be there for his daughter.
As USA Today reports, Mickelson's flight returned him to the tournament at about 4:30 Thursday morning, less than three hours before he was set to tee off.
Mickelson has won four majors, and has been runner-up at the U.S. Open a record five times.