Sports

Mickelson: ‘Mistake’ to go public with concerns

WINGED FOOT IN MOUTH: Phil Mickelson, speaking yesterday in Torrey Pines, Calif., about his recent comments regarding taxes rising in the state, said “I made a big mistake talking about this stuff publicly and I shouldn’t have done that.” (Reuters (2); Getty Images (3))

The golf world’s blue-collar everyman, Phil Mickelson, has created his share of problems in his professional life, but few days have been as taxing as the last couple.

While addressing his recent complaints about rising California and federal tax laws, Mickelson took to self-deprecating humor and chastised himself for taking his disdain public.

“This reminds me lot of Winged Foot in 2006, where I hit a drive way left off the tent,’’ Mickelson said yesterday, referring to his famous implosion on the final hole to lose the U.S. Open.

“This happened to be way right, but way off the tents,’’ Mickelson joked. “I’ve made some dumb, dumb mistakes, and obviously talking about this stuff was one of them. Like at Winged Foot, where I tried to carve a 3-iron around the tree [on the second shot] and get it up by the green and I make double bogey and lose the U.S. Open, I think I’m going to learn my lesson and take a wedge and get it back in play.

“I made a big mistake talking about this stuff publicly, and I shouldn’t have done that.’’

Mickelson created a minor national stir this week when, after his final round at the Humana Challenge in La Quinta, Calif., he voiced his frustrations to reporters about his over-taxed home state.

After the November election, state income taxes for California residents earning $1 million or more annually rose from 10.3 percent to 13.3 percent. That’s not including the federal taxes, which jumped from 35 percent to 39.6 percent for those in Mickelson’s tax bracket.

“I happen to be in that zone that has been targeted both federally and by the state and it doesn’t work for me right now,” said Mickelson, who according to Forbes was the seventh highest paid athlete in the world in 2012 with $4.8 million in winnings and $43 million in endorsements.

Mickelson, lamenting having to give what he said was 63 percent of his income to taxes, hinted at having to potentially make “drastic changes,’’ leading many to believe he would move out of his native California, where he’s raising his children and lives near his parents, and some to speculate he might consider retiring from golf.

“I love it here; I grew up in San Diego,’’ Mickelson said. “My family’s here, [my wife] Amy’s family is here, our kids’ grandparents are here. I grew up here. I love it here, and I’m certainly concerned for it.’’

After realizing he had stoked a culture war of sorts — one that was played out rather aggressively on social media — Mickelson issued a public apology on Tuesday, stating: “Finances and taxes are a personal matter and I should not have made my opinions on them public. I apologize to those I have upset or insulted and assure you I intend to not let it happen again.”

That led to yesterday at the Farmer’s Insurance Open at Torrey Pines and Mickelson’s first public comments since Sunday. Mickelson was nearly an hour late for the media gathering as he first huddled in his car with his publicist for around 40 minutes and then was seen leaning against the trunk of his car and meeting with the publicist and a PGA media official. “Just gathering my thoughts,” he told one reporter asking about the delay.

“It was insensitive to talk about it publicly to those people who are not able to find a job, that are struggling paycheck to paycheck,’’ Mickelson said.

Mickelson made it clear his apology was to those he offended by his statements, but he’s clearly still more than chafed by the tax issue he faces, saying, “My apology is for talking about it publicly, because I shouldn’t take advantage of the forum that I have as a professional golfer to try to ignite change over these issues.’’

He continued to dodge whether he planned on leaving San Diego for a state with no state income tax such as Florida and Texas, insisting that he’s fine paying “his fare share’’ of taxes.

“I don’t know what that is right now,” he said, “but I’ve never had a problem paying my fair share.”

In the clubby golf circles of deep-pocketed earners, Mickelson has peers who are facing down similar tax woes that threatened to eat into their purse winnings.

“I would think that he doesn’t need to apologize. He’s frustrated,” said Sacramento tax attorney Betty Williams of Williams & Associates. “There is a problem with the way our taxes are spent in California,” she added, noting that complaints from wealthy clients over taxes has spiked.

In ending his media session, Mickelson noted this was not the first time he has gone public with comments for which he would have liked a Mulligan.

“I’ve said some stupid things in the past that have caused a media uproar before,’’ Mickelson said. “It’s part of my life and I’ll deal with it. It’s just part of the deal.’’