Phil Mickelson biography hits shelves as he stays away from golf

Phil Mickelson was supposed to be at Southern Hills this week to defend his PGA Championship title. Instead, he's at home — and on bookshelves.

Driving the news: "Phil: The Rip-Roaring (and Unauthorized) Biography of Golf's Most Colorful Superstar," a new book by longtime SI writer and bestselling author Alan Shipnuck, is out Tuesday.

Why it matters: The highly anticipated book has already had a tremendous impact on its title character.

• In February, Shipnuck shared comments from Mickelson about the Saudi Arabia-backed LIV Tour, which he appeared to support despite the backers being "scary" and murdering journalists.
• Those comments, which Mickelson claimed were made "off the record," ultimately cost him millions of dollars and damaged his reputation and his relationship with the Tour.
• He didn't play in the Masters, where they had to deflect the idea that they'd asked him not to come. Now it's the PGA Championship's turn.

Excerpt: Mickelson's gambling habit is well-documented. Here's another story to add to the pile, courtesy of former CBS announcer Gary McCord:

"When I was in the TV tower ... every time Phil got to my hole, Bones [his caddie] would look up at me and I would flash the odds. If Phil had a 15-footer, I'd flash three fingers, which meant the odds were 3-1.

"If he was 60 feet, I'd give him 2-1 on a two-putt. Bones would go down and whisper in his ear and Phil would look up at me and shake his head, yes or no.

"I can't tell you how many wadded-up twenties I threw out of the tower, until the Tour found out about it and I got word through CBS I was no longer allowed to gamble with Phil while up in the tower."