Pro golfer Phil Mickelson had been tied to an illegal sports betting case brought by US federal authorities.

On Monday, ESPN reported on a plea deal that federal prosecutors in California had reached with Gregory Silveira. A former low-level sports betting tout, the 56-year-old Silveira agreed to plead guilty to three charges of money laundering in connection with an illegal sports betting operation. Silveira faces a maximum of 60 years in prison and a fine of up to $1.5m when he’s sentenced on Oct. 5.

Silveira was accused of transferring money that he knew represented the “proceeds” of an illegal online gambling business based outside of the country. Silveira copped to the fact that the primary purpose behind the transfers between bank accounts under his control was intended to conceal the flow of resources to and from the illegal operation.

At the crux of the prosecution is a $2.75m wire transfer that Silveira accepted in March 2010 from an unidentified “gambling client” that two sources told ESPN was Mickelson.