Phil Mickelson has always been a big tipper and around golf circles has always been known for a friendly wager or two. Some of those wagers have gotten him in minor trouble over the years with the golf establishment, while other dealings have whispered that association with gambling schemes could have gotten him in hot water. However to date, nothing has surfaced to put the popular PGA Tour Champion in anything more than some mildly hot water full of innuendo. Nothing has ever been proven, and Mickelson’s career and reputation with brands has always been stellar.
However that smoke on the gambling side could lead to some fire, according to an ESPN report on Monday.
Per USA Today’s For The Win…
“A report from ESPN’s Outside the Lines on Monday has linked golfer Phil Mickelson with a nearly $3 million sports-betting scheme with an “illegal gambling operation” based outside the United States. The report, which is based on court documents and various sources, notes that Mickelson has not been charged for his alleged involvement, but adds the man who reportedly handled his money pled guilty last week. A 56-year-old former sports gambling handicapper, acting as a conduit for an offshore gambling operation, pleaded guilty last week to laundering approximately $2.75 million of money that two sources told Outside the Lines belonged to Mickelson.
Gregory Silveira of La Quinta reached an agreement with prosecutors and pleaded guilty to three counts of money laundering of funds from an unnamed “gambling client” of his between February 2010 and February 2013. Sources familiar with the case said Mickelson, who was not named in court documents, is the unnamed “gambling client.” Silveira is scheduled to be sentenced Oct. 5 before U.S. District Court Judge Virginia A. Phillips and faces up to 60 years in prison, though the sentence will likely be far shorter.”
The reports come at an interesting time for golf, as a changing of the guard to a younger corps has helped revitalize the sport on the men’s side, and one reason, ironically, is because of the growth of pay fantasy golf which has gotten younger males more interested in a game they would not have cared for just a few years ago. While casual wagers have always been the norm around golf, large scale wagering tied to scandal has always been off in the distance. While there is no proof or statements on either side yet off of this morning’s report, it is worth watching especially as the sport head to The British Open, an event in a country where gaming is legal and accepted.