Mickelson works toward US Open despite ‘distractions’
DUBLIN, Ohio (AP) — Phil Mickelson ended a peculiar week at the Memorial yesterday. He had one round under par, one visit from FBI agents and lingering questions about insider trading investigation that he says he won’t discuss until it’s over.
One day after Mickelson said he had done “absolutely nothing wrong” in the trading probe, he closed with a one-over 73. Mickelson was so far out of contention that he finished his final round about the time the leaders were starting.
A federal official briefed on the investigation told The Associated Press the FBI and Securities and Exchange Commission are analysing trades Mickelson and Las Vegas gambler Billy Walters made involving Clorox at the same time activist investor Carl Icahn was attempting to take over the company. When Icahn’s intent became public, the stock price jumped.
Mickelson said the investigating was not a distraction “until Thursday”,when FBI agents approached him after his opening round at Muirfield Village. It was not clear if they met him at the golf course or off property.
The five-time major champion made it clear that his schedule would not change. He is playing the FedEx St Jude Classic in Memphis, Tennessee, next week before he goes to Pinehurst in North Carolina for the US Open. Mickelson was a runner-up at Pinehurst in 1999. He needs to win the US Open to become only the sixth player to capture golf’s four major championships.
Chudinov defends interim WBA middleweight belt
MOSCOW, Russia (AP) — Dmitry Chudinov of Russia maintained his unbeaten record by outpointing Denmark’s Patrick Nielsen yesterday to retain his interim WBA world middleweight title.
Chudinov won a unanimous decision over 12 rounds in the town of Mytishchi just outside Moscow, ending Nielsen’s unbeaten record in the process.
Chudinov dominated the fight from start to finish but Nielsen managed to hang on until the end, with the Russian fighter winning 116-112, 117-111 and 115-113 on the scorecards.
The Siberia-born Chudinov, nicknamed ‘Night Wolf’, improved to a 13-0-2 record with eight knockouts, while Nielsen is now 22-1.
The Russian won his interim belt in December when he stopped Colombian Juan Camilo Novoa in the sixth round in Moscow.
Kazakhstan’s Gennady Golovkin holds the full WBA world middleweight title.
