Phil Mickelson finds silver lining to getting kicked out of class in latest ‘Tribute Tuesday’ video

It’s Wednesday, which means that yesterday was Tuesday, which means we have another edition of Phil Mickelson’s “Tribute Tuesdays” to enjoy. As always, Phil took the time to honor an influential figure in his life. But this time we also learned a fun detail from the life of young Phil Mickelson.

It turns out that in grade school, Mickelson had a habit of getting kicked out of class. As Mickelson explains, when he was in 8th grade at the Blessed Sacrament school, he frequently caused some innocent trouble in class and became a distraction.

Because of that, his history teacher would tire of his antics and send him into the hallway. In Phil’s words, he was “a bit disruptive,” though he’s quick to clarify, “not a lot, but just enough to where he would kick me out of class and put me in the hallway.”

But getting kicked out of class lead to one of Phil’s most “impactful” relationships of his young life.

It turns out the history class was right next door to the principal’s office, and when he saw Phil waiting in the hallway, Principal Dr. Brian Bennett would call him into his office. Instead of scolding him, Bennett would let Phil hang out and “have some of the best conversations.”

“We would talk about life, and goals, and academic smarts, and life smarts and the difference,” Mickelson says of his former principal. “You could be book smart and academic smart, but unless you learn how the world operates, and develop life smarts and how to get things done, you’re not educated until you have both.”

Clearly these conversations had a huge impact on Mickelson, and he’s especially grateful for the way Bennett went about dealing with his problems in class.

“Rather than chastise me for getting sent outside the classroom AGAIN, he would pull me inside and lift me up and have great conversations,” Mickelson says in the video.

Dr. Bennett passed away years ago, but those acts of kindness and understanding have stuck with the five-time major champion throughout his entire life.

You can check out the full story yourself below.

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