Rory McIlroy says decision to leave Chandler was 'very difficult'
Rory McIlroy says his shock split from manager Andrew "Chubby" Chandler was "a very difficult decision to make".
McIlroy, who won his first major at the US Open in June, announced last month that he was leaving Chandler's International Sports Management (ISM) for Dublin-based Horizon.
"Chubby has been there for me since day one," the 22-year-old told BBC Sport.
"It was very difficult for me - I was very close to him and remain very close to him."
The Northern Irishman, who won the Shanghai Masters on Sunday and is competing in the WGC-HSBC Champions in the same city this week, said he had thought long and hard before making the decision.
"It was a purely business decision and nothing personal at all," he said.
"It's a decision that I didn't take lightly. I had a lot of chats with my mum and dad.
"You know sometimes to go forward in your career you just need to make decisions and I just thought it was a decision I needed to make.
"For four years, Chubby was the best guy and ISM were fantastic for me, but sometimes to progress you need to have a fresh view on things.
"It's about me trying to play my best golf and that's all there is to it. With a new environment around me, it might enable me to play even better."
On Tuesday, McIlroy bumped into his former manager on the range at the Sheshan Golf Club and there appeared to be no hard feelings between the two men.
"We've both already moved on," said Chandler. "We shared a laugh and a couple of jokes, had a chat and were fine, just like I knew we would be. I wish Rory nothing but the best."
Meanwhile, ISM client Lee Westwood was quick to praise Chandler's stewardship when asked to comment on McIlroy's departure.
"The service that they have given me has been very good," the English world number two told BBC Sport.
"I think it is important you have somebody that you can get on with as a manager."
Westwood tweeted that McIlroy's was a "bizarre decision" when his stable-mate announced he was leaving ISM on 21 October.
But he added: "I was pretty surprised, but not completely shocked. He [McIlroy] has always kind of done his own thing."
In his first tournament under new manager Conor Ridge, world number three McIlroy triumphed for the first time since his US Open victory when he won the Shanghai Masters.
Now McIlroy is aiming for back-to-back wins in the Chinese city - and with a first prize of nearly £750,000 up for grabs, he could make significant inroads into the £1.13m advantage of the absent Luke Donald in the Race to Dubai.
McIlroy said: "He [Donald] has obviously got a huge lead and if I could just get it somewhat close going into the last event in Dubai I would be happy. I know I will need to play well this week."
World number one Donald is at home in the United States awaiting the imminent arrival of his second child.
Tiger Woods, winless in 2011, failed to qualify for the 78-man event because the field is largely drawn from champions from tours around the world.
Four-time major winner Phil Mickelson is also absent because he does not want to play three weeks in a row and with the Presidents Cup in Australia looming, he has already committed to play in Singapore next week.
Andy Murray pulls out of Swiss Indoors because of injury
British number one Andy Murray has pulled out of the Swiss Indoors in Basel because of a right gluteal muscle strain.
The 24-year-old, who is on a 15-match winning streak, withdrew shortly before his first-round match against Dutchman Robin Haase was due to start.
"I was struggling to walk," said Murray, the world number three.
Roger Federer made progress to the quarter-finals with a 6-1 4-6 6-3 win over Finland's Jarkko Nieminen.
Murray, who won three titles in Asia last month, had requested a wildcard to play in an event featuring world number one Novak Djokovic and defending champion Federer.
"I trained twice on Monday and felt fine after that. It was a bit better on Tuesday morning and I went to a pool for some exercises and had a light hit. But this morning [Wednesday] I knew it was still not good enough.
"I don't know how I did it or what it came from. I've never had anything like this before."
Murray said he will travel to Paris on Thursday and take four or five days off with anti-inflammatory treatment in the hope of being fit for the Paris Masters, the final event of the regular ATP season, which starts on Monday.
Murray was replaced in the draw by Swiss Marco Chiudinelli, who subsequently lost the match against Haase 6-2 7-6.
Murray had chosen to play in Basle over Valencia, where he was champion two years ago, and was also set to play in the doubles with his brother Jamie.
The Scot was confident of adding to the titles he recently won in Bangkok, Tokyo and Shanghai, which enabled him to climb above Federer in the rankings.
Murray, who also won the Cincinnati Masters title in August, has only suffered one defeat in his last 26 matches - that came against Rafael Nadal in the semi-finals of the US Open last month.
Murray is gearing up for the ATP World Tour finals at the O2 Arena in London from 20-27 November.
Michael Johnson wants single Olympics ban for drugs cheats
Former Olympic champion Michael Johnson has called for athletes who fail a drugs test to be banned from the next Olympic Games.
British drug cheats are banned from all subsequent Games by the British Olympic Association, but other countries pick athletes who have served drugs bans.
Johnson told BBC Sport: "I'm not sure if a lifetime ban is actually fair.
"But it would be more of a deterrent for people if they see that an athlete who cheats misses an Olympic Games."
A recent ruling by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (Cas) overturned an IOC ban that meant anyone who had received a doping suspension of more than six months was banned from the next Games.
That means that American LaShawn Merritt, who brought the case, will allowed to defend his Olympic 400m title at London 2012.
But the BOA stance means the likes of sprinter Dwain Chambers and cyclist David Millar will not be able to compete in London.
"At the moment, an athlete can be banned for two years and then come back and compete in an Olympics," added Johnson.
Take LaShawn Merritt for example, he won't miss an Olympic Games.
"But then give that athlete a second chance. Everyone deserves a second chance, even cheaters."
Johnson, 44, won five gold medals at three different Olympics before retiring from sprinting in 2001.
However, he gave back his medal from the 4x400m relay in Sydney in 2000 when team-mates Tyrone Young and Antonio Pettigrew were both found to have cheated.
G20 leaders to meet amid Greek fears
The G20 leaders are due to meet in France amid concerns the eurozone's debt crisis may be worsening.
On Wednesday, eurozone leaders withheld the latest 8bn euro (£7bn) rescue loans for Greece until after its referendum on the package.
At the same time, China refused to commit to the European Financial Stability Fund (EFSF) seeking more clarity on the Greece situation.
The referendum is expected to take place on 4 or 5 December.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel has said the vote was over whether Greece wanted to stay in the eurozone.
US President Barack Obama is scheduled to hold a meeting with the French President Nicolas Sarkozy on Thursday, where the two leaders are expected to discuss the eurozone crisis.
Meanwhile, it has emerged that the UK is ready to support an increase in overall International Monetary Fund (IMF) funding for shoring up the euro.
'Disorderly default'
Greece prime minister George Papandreou has said that the referendum is effectively a decision on whether to stay within the single currency.
"I do believe there is a wide consensus among the Greek people... and the Greek people will speak soon," he said.
There has been widespread anger in Greece about the austerity measures such as public sector pay cuts and tax rises that have been demanded by the eurozone leaders as part of the new bailout agreement.
The fear is that people may vote against the deal, a move that many feel may jeopardise efforts to resolve the debt crisis.
"The concerns about a disorderly default have risen," Donald Hanna of Fortress Investment Group told the BBC.
'Must remain stable'
Many economists also fear that if Greece were to exit the euro, it could lead to financial contagion, as investors and ordinary bank depositors in other eurozone countries may fear that their own government will follow suit.
"Portugal and Ireland may follow Greece and you could also see a rise in the cost of borrowing for economies such as Italy," said Mr Hanna.
Mr Hanna explained that if Greece opted out of the eurozone, it will have to introduce its own currency which may depreciate hugely against the euro.
Any such move, he warned will see the value of euro debt increase and may result in the bankruptcy of firms exposed to it.
German Chancellor Ms Merkel said the eurozone leaders wanted Greece to remain a part of the group, but insisted that the Greek government's decisions were threatening to destabilise the region.
"The euro as a whole must remain stable," Ms Merkel said. "We would prefer to ensure this with Greece rather than without it. But the top priority is stability."
French President Mr Sarkozy added "there are rules that form the stability pact. It's up to Greece to decide if they want to continue the adventure with us".
Bigger trouble
While the eurozone debt crisis initially started with the smaller economies such as those of Greece and the Republic of Ireland, the fear is that if not controlled in time it may affect bigger economies such as Italy and Spain.
That in turn may hurt growth in the region and derail an already fragile global economic recovery.
Italy, whose debt levels are significantly higher than those of Greece, has hundreds of billions of euros in debts coming due for repayment over the next 12 months.
However, it is finding it increasingly difficult to borrow money in the international financial markets.
The country's one-year cost of borrowing has risen to 5.1%, its highest since joining the euro, and far above the mere 0.3% interest rate that Germany must pay.
The Italian cabinet agreed to new austerity measures demanded by other European governments at an emergency meeting on Wednesday evening, in a bid to ensure them that it was doing its part to cut its debt levels.
China refuses to commit to EFSF amid Greek concerns
China has said it cannot commit to investing in the European Financial Stability Fund (EFSF) until the situation with Greece has been clarified.
European leaders hoped that China would buy EFSF bonds, injecting capital in the region's financial markets.
The EFSF was one part of a three pronged rescue plan put together to solve eurozone's debt crisis.
Last week, eurozone leaders agreed to boost the EFSF capacity to 1tn euros.
European leaders had been seeking investment from China, which has $3.2tn (£2tn) in foreign exchange reserves.
"The fund has not established details of its investment options so we still can't talk about the issue of investing." Zhu Guangyao, China's deputy finance minister.
Greek concerns
Last week, Klaus Regling, the chief executive of the EFSF, travelled to Beijing in a bid to persuade the country's leaders to invest in the fund.
Though no deal was finalised, it was thought the Chinese authorities may agree to help the troubled economies, not least because the region is one the biggest market for Chinese exports and a crisis may dent demand for Chinese goods and hurt its export-dependent economy.
However, the decision by the Greece government to hold a referendum on the latest bailout package has seen the authorities take a cautious approach.
"Like our European friends, we did not expect [the call for a] Greek referendum," said Mr Zhu.
"It was an independent decision taken by Greece. I hope this period of uncertainty would be contained," he added.
The decision by the Greek government has also resulted in the eurozone leaders withholding the next 8bn euros of rescue loans for Greece until after the referendum.
TD Bank adds $9 savings account fee, hikes others
As other banks recoil from the customer wrath they faced after attempting to introduce debit card fees, TD Bank is rolling out a brand new fee and hiking others.
Starting in December, TD Bank (TD) savings account customers who exceed six transactions in a billing cycle will pay a $9 fee each time they take money out of their account. Transactions include online transfers from their savings account to other accounts, as well as phone and debit card withdrawals.
Citing a federal rule known as Regulation D, which limits the number of transactions customers can make from their savings accounts to six, other banks including Bank of America (BAC, Fortune 500) and Wells Fargo (WFC, Fortune 500) already have similar fees in place.
According to the regulation, after six savings account transactions it begins to costs the banks money. So TD Bank says it will begin charging customers instead of eating the cost itself, a spokeswoman said.
But some customers look at the new fee as just another way banks are trying to gouge them.
No more debit card fees. What will the banks try next?
"With everyone these days having to dip into their savings on a regular basis to transfer money to their checking to pay the bills - this is another way the Big Banks are making money," wrote one CNNMoney reader, who received a notice about the fee in the mail from TD Bank on Tuesday. "Credit Unions and Local Banks are looking more and more attractive these days."
At the same time, TD is hiking four of the fees it already charges -- all of which will also take effect in December. Receiving a wire transfer will now cost $15, up from $10. Getting a certified check will come with an $8 fee, up from the current $4 charge. Money orders will cost $5, instead of $4, and stop-payment fees will run $30, up from $25.
US Federal Reserve slashes US growth forecasts
The US Federal Reserve has slashed its forecast for US growth and upped its expectation for unemployment next year.
Despite this, the Fed voted to keep interest rates on hold and maintain its bond-buying programmes.
The decision was entirely what markets and economists expected.
Chairman Ben Bernanke said the Fed was also considering changes to its communications strategy. The Fed been criticised by Republican politicians and anti-Wall Street protesters.
Bleak outlook
The economy is expected to grow only 1.6%-1.7% this year, and 2.5%-2.9% next - about one percentage point lower than previous estimates. The jobless rate is expected to stay at 9.1% this year.
The Fed anticipates unemployment falling only to 8.5%-8.7% next year. It had previously predicted a fall to 7.8%.
The pessimistic forecasts contrast with a moderately upbeat assessment of the US economy released at the conclusion of its two-day meeting.
Economists took it as a sign that the committee felt no sense of urgency to take more action.
The committee voted 9-1 in favour of its statement, an improvement from the 7-3 vote recorded in September.
The one dissenter, Charles Evans of the Chicago Federal Reserve Bank, voted against because he wanted the Fed to take further action to boost the economy.
That is in sharp contrast to September, when three members opposed the Fed's new "Operation Twist" policy because they feared that inflation was too high.
Further steps
The statement noted a pick-up in spending by consumers, but also alluded to downside risks, including "strains in global financial markets", without explicitly mentioning the eurozone debt crisis.
The Fed has kept its overnight interest rate within a historic low target range of 0%-0.25% since December 2008, and repeated its promise to continue doing so until mid-2013.
The central bank will also continue its Operation Twist policy of switching $400bn into longer term government debts.
The move is an extension of the Fed's quantitative easing policy of creating money and using it buy debts of the federal government.
Operation Twist is intended to reduce longer-term interest rates, in order to encourage more borrowing and investment.
There has been speculation that the Fed may be preparing take further steps to stimulate the flagging US economy, in particular to reduce interest rates for mortgage borrowers.
Mr Bernanke told a press conference that buying more mortgage debts was a viable option for the Fed.
Another possibility is that the Fed may set itself a new policy target that would allow for a temporarily higher inflation rate, although Mr Bernanke played down the possibility of a radical change in its mandate.
However, most economists were not expecting any such steps until the Fed's next meeting, in December.
'Politics is politics'
Mr Bernanke said the committee had discussed changes in its communications strategy, but without elaborating.
The Fed first decided in March this year to hold press conference every three months.
However, many anti-Wall Street protesters have called for the abolition of the Fed.
The central bank's easy monetary policy has also been heavily criticised by some Republican presidential candidates.
The Fed was sent a letter by Republican politicians calling on it to stop stimultive policies.
"Politics is politics," said Mr Bernanke at his latest press conference. "We are going to make our decisions based on what is good for the economy, we are not going to take politics into account."
Italian Cabinet Fails to Reach Consensus On Financial reforms
Italy's cabinet has held an emergency meeting on ways to accelerate budget reforms and avert a major financial crisis.
Italy's prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi is expected to face intense pressure from G20 leaders to produce a set of concrete reforms to stop financial markets from targeting Italian bonds. Italy's borrowing rates are increasing as a result of market turmoil in the eurozone, caused by Greece.
Mr. Berlusconi held meetings with senior officials and ministers ahead of the cabinet meeting, but could not get them to reach a consensus on an emergency decree that he could present at the upcoming G20 summit.
The official statement said the cabinet had examined a set of government measures to avert financial crisis and had approved an amendment to the budget, but no details were revealed.
There was no agreement either on the contentious issues such as labor market reform or a tax on the wealthy.
The prime minister has been criticized over his handling of the Italian financial crisis and his failure to pass decisive economic reforms.
Mr. Berlusconi has said that Italy is applying solutions that will help the country cut its deficit by 2013. But Italy's public debt is equivalent to 120 percent of gross domestic product and its economic growth is sluggish.
After Greece, Italy and Spain are the most threatened by the financial crisis in the eurozone.
California protesters shut down Oakland port
Thousands of anti-corporate greed demonstrators have closed one of America's busiest ports.
A spokesman for the Port of Oakland in California said maritime operations had effectively halted.
The shutdown capped a day in which hundreds of city workers, including teachers, joined the call for a strike.
The crowds also stopped traffic at a junction where a military veteran was seriously injured last week as protesters clashed with police.
Ex-Marine Scott Olsen, 24, is recovering in an Oakland hospital after being struck on the head with a tear gas canister fired by police.
That incident catapulted Oakland, which is on San Francisco Bay, to the centre of the national Occupy Wall Street movement and has spurred fresh demonstrations across the US.
Elsewhere in the US on Wednesday:
- Police in Philadelphia arrested nine protesters who staged a sit-in inside the lobby of Comcast, America's largest cable firm
- In New York, about 100 military veterans marched in uniform and stopped in front of the city's stock exchange where there was a heavy police presence
- In Boston, college students and union workers marched on Bank of America offices and the statehouse to protest over the student debt crisis
Organisers of the latest Occupy Oakland protest said they wanted to disrupt operations at the nation's fifth busiest port, which handles about $39bn (£24bn) a year in imports and exports.
"At this time, maritime operations are effectively shut down at the Port of Oakland," the port said in a written statement to Reuters news 
agency. "Maritime area operations will resume when it is safe and secure to do so."
Oakland police estimated that about 3,000 demonstrators were gathered at the port. Earlier, police said 4,500 people had marched across the city on Wednesday.
A number of businesses were shut during the protests, which were largely peaceful during the day, with low police visibility.
The event began with a rally outside city hall and several banks, closed for the day, were picketed.
Among the demonstrators were students, families with young children and union members.
One large protest banner read: "Occupy Everything, death to capitalism."
Oakland officials said about 5% of employees had taken the day off, including about 360 teachers.
One teacher at the rally, Brother Muziki, told AFP news agency: "Our classrooms are overcrowded. The banks are being bailed out - but not the schools."
The BBC's Alastair Leithead in Los Angeles says Oakland has a higher than average unemployment rate and suffered badly during the US recession.
The activists have been protesting against a system which they believe favours corporations and the nation's wealthiest 1%.
Third woman claims inappropriate behaviour from Cain
A third woman has reportedly accused leading Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain of inappropriate behaviour in the workplace.
She alleges she received unwanted comments from Mr Cain during his tenure as head of a restaurant lobby group.
She told the Associated Press Mr Cain had commented on her attractiveness and invited her to his corporate apartment.
The unnamed woman is the third former employee to make such allegations in recent days.
The Cain campaign has been fighting the claims since Politico reported on Sunday that at least two other women had complained of inappropriate behaviour from Mr Cain while he was head of the National Restaurant Association in the 1990s.
Raised voice
A Cain spokesman, JD Gordon, told reporters on Wednesday: "Mr Cain has said over the past two days at public events that we could see other baseless allegations made against him as this appalling smear campaign continues."
The third woman to come forward told the Associated Press that she had considered filing a complaint against Mr Cain.
She said her former boss had made sexually suggestive remarks or gestures around the same time the two other women filed their complaints.
The woman, who wishes to remain anonymous, says the reason she did not eventually file a complaint was because she started to have fewer interactions with Mr Cain.
Speaking to the Associated Press, the woman said Mr Cain's actions "were inappropriate, and it made me feel uncomfortable".
Republican pollster Chris Wilson, who supports Texas Governor Rick Perry's presidential campaign, said he witnessed Mr Cain sexually harass a woman in a restaurant near Washington DC.
He told Oklahoma City's KTOK radio that "if she talks about it, I think it'll be the end of his campaign".
Recalling the alleged incident in the restaurant, the Oklahoma-based consultant told Politico: "It was very uncomfortable," and said that others present had asked Cain to stop.
However, one woman who worked with Mr Cain at the restaurant association has stood up for him.
Lobbyist Christina Howard told the Associated Press: "I found him to be a good boss. I felt no problem going into his office and asking for his advice."
On Wednesday, after a speech to healthcare professionals Mr Cain refused to take questions - at one point raising his voice in frustration - and left the hotel in Washington DC through a back door.
"What did I say?" said Mr Cain. "Excuse me. Excuse me! What part of 'no' don't people understand?"
In an interview with Forbes, Mr Cain accused a former adviser to his unsuccessful Senate campaign in 2004, Curt Anderson, of leaking the original story.
Mr Anderson, who is now an adviser to Mr Perry, has denied the accusation, saying: "I never heard about this story until I read about it in Politico."
The Perry campaign suggested the campaign of another Republican candidate, Mitt Romney, might have been the source.
On Tuesday, the lawyer of one of the original complainants said he had contacted the National Restaurant Association to ask for his client to be released from her confidentiality agreement.
Politico has reported that the trade group gave settlements to at least two female employees who accused Mr Cain of inappropriate sexual behaviour.
The New York Times reported on Tuesday that one payout was $35,000 (£22,000), equivalent to a year's salary for one of the women.