Phil Mickelson this year began chewing gum during PGA Tour play because he said the "chewing aspect stimulates the frontal cortex" of his brain. He said that he chews "two pieces per round, but would not divulge the type of brand." Mickelson: "It's not on the market yet" (N.Y. TIMES, 3/15).
MEDICAL ASSISTANCE: The Univ. of Chicago Medicine will be the presenting sponsor of the Chicago Sun-Times' coverage of the Chicago Sky and WNBA this season. The paper will "retain editorial control over team coverage, with UChicago Medicine presenting each Sky story through an advertising sponsorship, both in print and online" (SUNTIMES.com, 3/14).
END OF DAYS: Sports apparel company BreakingT is selling shirts that honor Big 12 regular-season co-champs Kansas State and Texas Tech that read, "The Streak is Dead," a "reference to Kansas' 14 consecutive conference titles." The shirts "are missing the words Big 12, but they include '2018-19 Conference Champs'" (KANSASCITY.com, 3/13).
HAPPY DAZE: The U.S. Patent & Trademark Office denied Penn State's request to trademark "Happy Valley," ruling that the "proposed mark does not pass muster as it is 'primarily geographically descriptive' of the State College region." PSU in December asked the office to grant it "ownership of the mark in selling licensed products" (PITTSBURGH POST-GAZETTE, 3/15).
