Mickelson, DeChambeau, and Others Commence Lawsuit against PGA TOUR

The question was always “when,” never “if.”  And today, we got our answer.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Earlier today, Phil Mickelson, Talor Gooch, Hudson Swafford, Matt Jones, Bryson DeChambeau, Abraham Ancer, Carlos Ortiz, Ian Poulter, Pat Perez, Jason Kokrak, and Peter Uihlein commenced an anti-trust lawsuit against the PGA TOUR in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.

The 106-page complaint starts by stating that PGA TOUR: “began when Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer, and other elite golfers in the 1960s determined the PGA of America was not compensating them their market value and they split off the Players Tournament Division and formed the Tour, a tax-exempt entity organized ostensibly to ‘promote the common interests of professional tournament golfers,'” but quickly (and harshly) transitions to claiming that the TOUR has since “evolved into an entrenched monopolist with a vicegrip on professional golf.”

The complaint continues by mentioning every instance the TOUR has undertook, directly and indirectly, to destroy LIV and punish those who consider taking sides with the alternative tour.  Among numerous others are:

• Mickelson—who disappeared off the face of the earth earlier this year—had actually been suspended by the TOUR for a 2-month period for recruiting golfers to join LIV;
• shortly after the Asian Tour accepted an investment and partnership opportunity with LIV, Asian Tour CEO Cho Minn Thant received a call from Martin Slumbers, the CEO of the R&A, who threatened rescinding a unique pathway for Asian Tour golfers to gain entry to The Open; and
• the TOUR threatened “black-listing” certain businesses that contemplated doing business with LIV, including Arena Americas (a tent provider), R2 Innovative Technologies (a live scoring technology company), Top Tracer, Levelwear (an athletic apparel brand), and NBC, CBS and Golf Channel.

Here’s the letter PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan just sent membership regarding today’s lawsuit.

I see we’re still going with “Saudi Golf League.” pic.twitter.com/Ajv6VBsG9Q

— Dan Rapaport (@Daniel_Rapaport) August 3, 2022

What the lawsuit legally focuses on is Section V.B.1.b. of the PGA Tour Player Regulations & Tournament Regulations, which states :

No PGA Tour member shall participate in any live or recorded golf program without the prior written approval of the Commissioner, except that this requirement shall not apply to PGA Tour cosponsored, coordinated or approved tournaments, wholly instructional programs or personal appearances on interview or guest shows.

These 47 words are the TOUR’s sword and justification for all the acts (e.g., suspensions and fines) it’s taken against the LIV golfers.  To explain, the PGA TOUR has interpreted “golf program” to include “any golf contest, exhibition or play that is shown anywhere in the world in any form of media now known or hereinafter developed.” As a result, when the LIV golfers played in an event that was broadcast over YouTube, the PGA TOUR claimed they acted in violation of this rule and could be punished accordingly.

The timing of the lawsuit is pivotal, as the LIV Plaintiffs are seeking an immediate decision that would allow them to compete in the FedEx Cup Playoffs, which begin next week.  It is also worth noting is this isn’t the only courtroom battle the TOUR is facing. Indeed, the U.S. Department of Justice is also investigating the TOUR for—you guessed it—potential anti-trust violations in connection with LIV.

Cover Image Via Sporf