Gary McCord Details Betting During PGA TOUR Events With Phil Mickelson
Steph Chambers/Getty Images. Pictured: Phil Mickelson.
It's nothing new to golf fans' ears that Phil Mickelson likes betting on whatever he can.
The stories of Mickelson's gambling exploits have become legendary. In an excerpt of Alan Shipnuck’s upcoming book, it’s revealed that from 2010-14, Mickelson lost more than $40 million on his gambling.
So nothing should really come as a surprise anymore, but this story has a little bit.
Gary McCord is a staple on CBS' golf broadcasts, patrolling the 16th hole for years and years. Obviously, he knew Mickelson very well and put down some wagers with the man himself.
No one knew that those bets would come during PGA TOUR events, though.
On SiriusXM PGA TOUR Radio, McCord confirmed the story that he would bet on Mickelson's putts with the man himself during live action. He explained how the process worked with Mickelson's former caddy Jim "Bones" Mackay serving as the middleman.
“He loved to bet," McCord told co-hosts Jason Sobel and David Feherty. "So what would happen, he’d hit the ball on the green, that par 3. It was 20 feet. So, Bones, in this time period we were doing this, would look up to the tower and I would give him the odds. And I gave him 3-1.
“He talked to Phil, and Phil gave me a thumbs up. And he holed it, so I took $60, three 20s, waded it and threw it down on the green for him to pick it up and he picked it up.”
Eventually, the PGA TOUR noticed $20 bills being thrown down from a TV tower to one of the game's most popular players, and that's when it ended.
“We were doing it for a long time out there, doing that, and finally I got called in by CBS," McCord said. "The TOUR called, and they didn’t like the gambling aspect of money being exchanged on the 16th hole every week.”
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