Phil Mickelson will never return to the PGA Tour, regardless of LIV Golf's uncertain future, according to former ESPN host Trey Wingo. The former host believes that the six-time major winner will not be welcomed back to the PGA Tour following his decided to join LIV four years ago.

Reports on Wednesday from the Wall Street Journal claimed that Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF) will withdraw its funding for the league at the end of the season.While the PGA Tour has already offered a route back to the likes of Brooks Koepka and Patrick Reed, albeit with hefty financial penalties, Mickelson faces a tougher path to return.

The American is nearer to the end of his career, and he also adopted a particularly vocal stance when becoming one of LIV's founding players in 2022. "I think going forward you have to pick a side. You have to pick what side do you think is going to be successful," Mickelson said after joining LIV. "I firmly believe that I'm on the winning side of how things are going to evolve and shape in the coming years for professional golf."

The league's future was thrown into serious doubt earlier this month, however, amid initial speculation that funding could be withdrawn. LIV Golf chief executive Scott O'Neil recently insisted this season's schedule will be completed as planned.

Wingo, for his part, is firmly of the opinion that Mickelson is not someone who can be welcomed back to the PGA Tour. The broadcaster made his position clear.

"I can promise you one person that you'll never see in any way in an official capacity with the PGA Tour is Phil Mickelson," said Wingo. "That bridge has been burned, detonated, destroyed, nuked, lasered to death. There is no building that bridge back."

Mickelson was among LIV's most vocal advocates and had previously discussed the sport's long-term prospects. He was keen to see the series continue to grow.

EXPRESS SPORT ON FB!Get all the best sports news and much more on our Facebook page

"I think there's a lot of things that are going to transpire over the next five or 10 years. I'm very bullish and excited about what that means for LIV Golf," he said previously.

"But there's also a lot of uncertainty. I think the things that I do know is I think the quality of the players will continue to get better each year. I think that the ability and the sites that we move throughout the world will continue to excite players and excite fans.

"We'll be going to more countries outside of the United States that really are starving for world-class professional golf, and we'll have a lot more receptions like we had at Adelaide [where LIV played last week]."

Mickelson, 55, has been a champion for LIV Golf and highlighted the advantages of the competition. "From the players' experience, rather than going into every little detail, I would just say that I used to have anxiousness going to a Tour event with all the details that would go on.

"From the players' experience, rather than going into every little detail, I would just say that I used to have anxiousness going to a Tour event with all the details that would go on," he said.

"I would be anxious and not want to go. I'd go as late as I could. A LIV event, I can't wait to get here. I come earlier.

"I can't wait to get here. The experience from a player's standpoint, it's better than I could have ever imagined."