SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. MLB Jerseys China . -- Phil Mickelson is going ahead with his Phoenix Open title defence after testing his ailing lower back on Wednesday at exclusive Whisper Rock. "I had a good practice session, though I didnt go full speed for much of it," Mickelson said in a statement. "I feel fine. I expect to play and play well." He first felt soreness two weeks ago in Abu Dhabi, and then withdrew from the Farmers Insurance Open on Friday after making the cut at Torrey Pines. He flew to Georgia to see back specialist Tom Boers and was told his facet joints locked up. Last year at TPC Scottsdale, the former Arizona State star opened with an 11-under 60 and matched the Phoenix Open record of 28 under. He was set to make his 25th start in the event that he also won in 1996 and 2005. Mickelson lived in the Phoenix area for 12 years. "If it was any other tournament Id skip it," Mickelson said this week. "But Im defending, its my second hometown and I love the event." Lefty also said he expects to play next week at Pebble Beach, where hes a five-time champion. He is skipping Riviera and the Match Play Championship because his oldest daughter has spring break a week earlier than his other two children. On Thursday at TPC Scottsdale, the 43-year-old Mickelson was scheduled to open play on the 10th tee in a morning group with Bill Haas and Ryan Moore. While Mickelson now lives near his hometown of San Diego, Torrey Pines winner Scott Stallings is setting up a winter base in Scottsdale. He also is joining Whisper Rock, the club where Mickelson and other tour players are members. "My wife and I are renting in Scottsdale at Grayhawk, so we are five minutes away from here," Stallings said. "I have been playing and practicing out of here, actually also at Whisper Rock -- went through the whole process and we are going to make somewhat of a winter home out here. Especially, with the vile weather thats been in the South, I dont miss that at all. We miss our families, but I dont miss that weather at all." Stallings won Sunday in San Diego for his third tour title. "That venue and that event was very special and a huge stepping stone in my career," he said. Stallings is getting over an illness that also hit his wife and son. "Honestly, if you asked me yesterday, Id say there is no way Im playing in the tournament," he said. "The Mayo Clinic and the tournament got me hooked up with some good doctors and nurses, all kind of IVs and fluid and stuff like that. Im a completely different person than I was yesterday." Patrick Reed is coming off a victory two weeks ago in California in the Humana Challenge. Riding a self-described "putting coma" at La Quinta, Reed opened with three straight 9-under 63s and closed with a 71 for a two-stroke victory. "The greens, when I first saw them, there were a couple brown spots on them, and I thought that meant it was going to be not rolling very true, but I didnt see any putts really hop," Reed said about TPC Scottsdale. "Whenever you have greens like that that are just really pure, just like they were at Humana, Im excited." Lee Westwood is making his first start in the event. He also played last week at Torrey Pines, in part because of the tours new wraparound schedule. "Normally, I would go play the Middle East swing. I would go and play Abu Dhabi, Qatar, and Dubai or two of those three," the Englishman said. "I decided not to go this year and wanted to play a few more events in the States. "If you dont play these, then youre giving up a big start, because they have played six before the season, so it started last year. So its like a quarter of the schedule gone if you dont start until Pebble or L.A., so it makes sense to play a couple of these." Mickelsons decision to play cost Ryo Ishikawa a spot in the field. The Japanese player tied for seventh last week at Torrey Pines, but didnt get into the Phoenix Open as a top-10 finisher because the field was full before that entry category. Cheap Houston Astros Jerseys . on the 15-day disabled Monday list because of a strained right hamstring. Wholesale MLB Jerseys . The world No. 1 had one of the most dominating performances in a final and was on his way to a possible shutout on Sunday until the third-seeded Berdych broke the super Serbs serve in the 12th game of the match. http://www.cheapmlbjerseyfreeshipping.com/?tag=cheap-washington-nationals-jerseys .She struggled with a hacking cough, she was sick, and she twice celebrated too early, but she held her composure in a 6-3, 7-6 (5) victory on Saturday.On her third match point, she let her racket go before hearing a let call to what she thought was an ace.DALLAS -- Rich Peverley will not play again this season after collapsing on the bench during a game. Whether the Dallas Stars forward will ever play again wont be known until after more extensive work is done to evaluate his irregular heartbeat. Peverley appeared briefly at a news conference Wednesday, reading nervously from a statement that thanked "the number of people that saved my life" after he went down in the first period of a game against Columbus, stunning players, coaches and fans. The 31-year-old left the questions to doctors who said his season was over and he would undergo a procedure that he decided to put off when his condition was first discovered during a physical before training camp in September. Dr. Robert Dimeff said Peverley was given the option of treating atrial fibrillation, the most common type of heart arrhythmia, with a minor adjustment and medication or missing several months to undergo a more invasive approach. "He said, Im new to the team, its a new coach, a new general manager, I only have a two-year contract, theyve got to know that I can play," Dimeff said of Peverley, who came to the Stars in an off-season trade from the Boston Bruins. "And so we went back and forth. That was a joint decision, an informed decision on his part." Dimeff said Peverleys heart likely raced out of control and then stopped during the game against Columbus on Monday night, but probably for no more than about 10 seconds before medical personnel got it going again in the tunnel behind the Dallas bench at American Airlines Center. The game was postponed. The procedure Peverley skipped in September, called an ablation, will likely be performed within days. When he walked out of the news conference at St. Paul University Hospital, Peverley could be seen wearing a device that a doctor later described as something that monitors his heart rate constantly and can be used to implement corrective measures if the heartbeat gets out of rhythm. Peverley remains hospitalized, but all heart tests have been normal, Dimeff said. "The last couple of days have been a lot of anxiety, a lot of unknown," Stars general manager Jim Nill said. "It turns out that its a great day to walk in here, to see Rich Peverley walking in here." Dimeff said the question of whether its safe for Peverley to play hockey again wasnt one they wanted to address yet. Cheap Chicago Cubs Jerseys. Peverley was sidelined through the first game of the regular season after the condition was diagnosed, then played in 60 straight games before complaining of discomfort that caused him to miss a game at Columbus last week. Dimeff said doctors adjusted his medication after last weeks episode, and he played in two more games before his collapse. "This is extremely rare in our sports medicine world," Dimeff said. "We dont think about atrial fibrillation as one of these conditions that leads to more serious rhythms." The Stars have been monitoring Peverleys heart rate in practice, and he had what Dimeff called a "red light-green light" device that the player could use to tell whether his heartbeat was out of rhythm. But the rapid response when he was stricken against the Blue Jackets wasnt because his doctors have always been on high alert during games. The NHL implemented emergency medical procedures after Detroits Jiri Fischer had a similar incident that ended his career in 2005. Fischer, who was 25 when he played his final game and is now the director of player development for the Red Wings, said he exchanged text messages with Peverley on Tuesday night. "Just because on video my cardiac arrest looks like kind of similar to his, that doesnt mean were the same or that well follow the same path," Fischer told The Associated Press. "Hell have to make some decisions -- educated ones based on the advice hell get -- his family." The Stars flew to St. Louis not long after the Columbus game was postponed and beat St. Louis 3-2 in overtime the next night. The bench erupted when Jamie Benns winning goal went in, with the errant stick of one player striking exuberant coach Lindy Ruff in the face. Alex Chiasson didnt make the trip because he was in the same hospital as Peverley after being traumatized by the incident. But Ruff said the 23-year-old forward was back to skating Wednesday and should play Friday night against Calgary in the first home game since Peverleys collapse. "This doesnt go away in one game," Ruff said. "Those emotions that the players will carry forward are going to last for a good period of time." ' ' '