Clarke deal with Barclays is safe

Phil Mickelson's mega-move to sponsors Barclays won't affect Darren Clarke's deal with the banking giants.

World No 2 Mickelson signed a two-year deal that will see him play the Scottish Open, the Singapore Open and the first FedExCup play-off event, which are all sponsored by the company.

But Clarke's management company has confirmed that the Ulsterman will not be losing his lucrative deal.

Barclays president Bob Diamond called Clarke's agent Chubby Chandler to tell him of the move.

And an ISM spokesman confirmed: "Chubby was very supportive. It won't affect Darren's arrangement with Barclays in any way."

Clarke is currently 234th in the world and won't reappear until next week's Andalucia Open.

But he has turned down a sponsor's invitation to play in the $5.5 million Verizon Heritage at Harbour Town in mid-April.

The five-time Ryder Cup hero has decided instead to play the Volvo China Open in Beijing and the BMW Asian Open in Shanghai