Mickelson set to make PGA Tour return next week

Phil Mickelson plans to return to the PGA Tour for next week's St. Jude Classic and compete in the U.S. Open which follows, the player's manager said on Monday.

The American world number two shut down his 2009 campaign indefinitely last month after his wife Amy was diagnosed with breast cancer.

However, his wife's breast cancer surgery has been scheduled for the end of this month, allowing Mickelson to compete at the June 18-21 U.S. Open, his manager T.R. Reinman told Reuters.

"Phil will be playing in in the St. Jude Classic next week and then in the U.S. Open the week after that," Reinman said by phone.

Last week, Mickelson expressed optimism about his wife's breast cancer, saying that doctors believed they had diagnosed the condition early.

"We have a wonderful team of doctors helping us and it is believed that we caught this early," the 38-year-old said on his official website (www.philmickelson.com). "We are anxiously waiting for a number of test results that will help guide us in the best possible direction."

A three-time major champion, Mickelson had been due to compete at the May 21-24 Byron Nelson Championship in Dallas before defending his title at last week's Colonial Invitational in Fort Worth.

He will now have one warm-up event at the St. Jude before competing in the U.S. Open at Bethpage, New York, where he can expect an emotional welcome at a venue where he received huge support when the tournament was previously held there on 2002.

Roared on by huge galleries for all four rounds on Bethpage's Black Course, the American left-hander finished second, three strokes behind compatriot Tiger Woods.

Phil and Amy Mickelson married in 1996 and have three children aged nine, seven, and six.

LOS ANGELES, Reuters