Ashley Perez’s allegations against Phil Mickelson have dragged one of golf’s biggest names back into controversy as his future remains unclear.
Phil Mickelson is back in the golf headlines, but not for a Sunday charge, a ridiculous flop shot or another LIV Golf controversy.
This time, the six-time major champion is facing new allegations from Ashley Perez, the ex-wife of professional golfer Pat Perez, who went on the record with Skratch’s Alan Shipnuck about an alleged 2015 incident involving Mickelson at Liberty National Golf Club.
According to Ashley Perez, Mickelson invited her and Pat Perez to stay at his villa during the 2015 Barclays Championship. What she says happened later that night has added another explosive layer to the growing scrutiny surrounding Mickelson’s off-course conduct.
Ashley told Shipnuck that she and Pat were drinking wine with Mickelson after dinner when Pat briefly stepped away. That’s when, according to Ashley, Mickelson made an unwanted advance.
“When Pat excused himself to use the restroom, Ashley says Mickelson took out his phone and showed her a full-body picture of himself naked with an erection while flexing one bicep.
Claims Ashley, "Phil says to me, 'I'm going to leave my bedroom door open tonight. When Pat falls asleep I want you to come see me.'"
Ashley said she rejected the advance and chose not to tell her husband immediately because of the awkward setting and the fact that Pat still had tournament golf to play.
“We were staying next door to Phil,” she says, “and Pat still had to play in the tournament. I didn't want it to get messy.”
She said she told Pat after the tournament ended. According to the report, Pat Perez did not confront Mickelson face-to-face at the time, but the story eventually spread inside Tour circles.
Shipnuck reported that Mickelson later apologized to Pat during a corporate event at the Madison Club in La Quinta, California, and again in a recorded phone call that Ashley allowed Shipnuck to hear.
That detail matters because Perez is not an anonymous voice. She attached her name to the story and said she wanted to speak publicly because she believes silence protects powerful men.
“There is a culture of silence that keeps women from coming forward,” Ashley said. “I want to give other women the courage to share their truth. With Phil, I feel like the pattern has been there for many years but people have been afraid to go public because it's Phil Mickelson. We give these golfers so much adulation and money, they think they're gods.
"They think they're untouchable. Being a pro athlete doesn't exempt you from behaving respectfully in society. With Phil, you're dealing with an egotistical narcissist. I know the type - I used to be married to one. Phil will keep going until he gets caught. Actually, it takes more than that. If Phil's behavior is ever going to change, he has to understand the trauma he has caused so many people in so many parts of his life.”
Mickelson has not personally addressed Ashley Perez’s allegation in detail, but his attorney, Tom Clare, issued a statement to Skratch pushing back on the broader reporting.
“Some of the allegations circulating about Mr. Mickelson are false, and others revisit mistakes he has already acknowledged, publicly or privately,” Clare said.
“Stacking the disputed claims next to the ones he has owned does not make them credible. It instead contributes to a false and misleading narrative. No person, no article, and no book can present an accurate, complete, or personal story of the life Mr. Mickelson and his family have lived. His story, struggles, and recovery belong to him and to the people who have shared it closely alongside him.
“Recovery is not a straight line. Throughout their 35-year relationship, his wife, Amy Mickelson, has supported Mr. Mickelson and their family with extraordinary grace, unwavering love, and the belief that people are measured not only by their failures, but by what they do to make them right.
"Mr. Mickelson's priority is to become the husband, father, and man his family deserves. Right now, that means giving his full attention to a private family health matter. He understands that parts of his life are public, but his family's private matters are not.”
The allegations arrive during a strange stretch in Mickelson’s career.
The 55-year-old LIV Golf star has played only one professional event this season, finishing T48 at LIV Golf South Africa in March. He missed the Masters and PGA Championship while citing a family health matter, and his status for the Open Championship at Royal Birkdale remains uncertain.
Mickelson’s legacy was already complicated. He is one of the most accomplished golfers ever, with six major championships and decades of fan-favorite status.
But his move to LIV Golf, past gambling revelations and now multiple reports about alleged inappropriate conduct have badly damaged the old “Phil the Thrill” image.
This latest story doesn’t just create another uncomfortable headline. It raises a much bigger question for golf: how many stories were whispered around clubhouses for years before someone finally felt safe enough to say them out loud?
