Report: Mickelson did not trade in Clorox stock

Golf star Phil Mickelson was not involved in insider trading in the shares of Clorox Co (NYSE:CLX) when billionaire investor Carl Icahn was attempting an unsolicited takeover of the consumer products company in 2011, the New York Times reported, citing people briefed on the probe.

Clorox was among the stocks that U.S. authorities were examining as part of a three-year investigation into well-timed trades by Mickelson and Las Vegas gambler William Walters.

The FBI and the Securities and Exchange Commission did not find evidence that Mickelson traded Clorox shares, but Icahn and Walters remain under investigation over Clorox, the report said citing the people. (http://r.reuters.com/kyq99v)

Mickelson's agent and representatives for Carl Icahn could not be reached for comment outside regular U.S. business hours.

The federal authorities believed that Icahn may have shared details about his stock bid with Walters, who later passed on the information to Mickelson.

The FBI is pursuing a criminal investigation in the case, while the SEC is running a parallel civil inquiry.

Mickelson, 43, a three-time Masters champion and one of the world's highest-paid athletes, earlier said he had done nothing wrong and was cooperating with the investigation. [ID:nL1N0OI0KV]

Although, Mickelson is not connected to the Clorox trades, he is not in the clear on Dean Foods Co <DF.N>. The FBI, federal prosecutors in Manhattan and the SEC continue to investigate well-timed trades made by Mickelson and Walters in shares of Dean Foods in the summer of 2012, the newspaper said, citing people briefed on the matter.