Nicklaus awarded $50 million in defamation suit

A Florida assemblage connected Monday awarded Jack Nicklaus $50 cardinal successful his defamation suit against billionaire banker Howard Milstein and different officials of the institution that bears the 18-time large champion's name.

Nicklaus, 85, filed the suit successful effect to statements that Milstein and different Nicklaus Companies officials made successful a erstwhile suit successful a New York court.

In the defamation lawsuit, Nicklaus claimed the defendants suggested that helium had considered a $750 cardinal woody to go the look of the Saudi Arabian-financed LIV Golf League and disseminated those mendacious claims to media outlets.

"It's ever hard successful a defamation lawsuit to beryllium damages to reputation, due to the fact that successful peculiar for a feline similar Jack, it's ever specified a bully one," Nicklaus' attorney, Eugene Stearns, told ESPN connected Monday. "But I deliberation what was important was the quality that arose 3 and a fractional years agone erstwhile the institution told the satellite that Jack was selling retired the PGA Tour for the Saudi golf, erstwhile it was not true. So, we're blessed that Jack's been vindicated."

In tribunal documents, the golfer's attorneys wrote that a Nicklaus Companies authoritative asked him to conscionable with Golf Saudi representatives successful 2021 astir designing a play people successful Saudi Arabia. During that meeting, Nicklaus learned that Golf Saudi wanted him to judge a enactment relation successful LIV Golf.

"According to Nicklaus, helium had nary involvement successful the connection and declined due to the fact that helium felt the PGA Tour was an important portion of his legacy, and if the PGA was not successful favour of a caller league, helium did not privation to beryllium involved," the tribunal documents said.

Nicklaus claimed the defendants besides alleged that Nicklaus wasn't mentally acceptable to negociate his concern affairs and was suffering from dementia.

"What they said was, 'You request to person the keys taken away,'" Stearns said. "But the operation of each of that was unfortunate, and we're blessed that this is each soon going to beryllium down Jack, and hopefully the Nicklaus Companies volition bash fine, arsenic well. But it was an unfortunate incident, and hopefully present it's over."

Nicklaus Companies said it paid the legendary golfer $145 cardinal successful May 2007 for exclusive rights to his play people plan services and marketing, promotional and branding rights.

Nicklaus resigned from the institution successful 2017, triggering a five-year noncompete clause successful the woody that prevented him from designing play courses connected his own. Nicklaus stepped down from the company's committee successful May 2022.

Not agelong after, Nicklaus Companies sued Nicklaus and his institution GBI Investors, alleging tortious interference, breach of declaration and breach of judiciary work against Nicklaus. The ailment alleged that Nicklaus had diverted opportunities distant from Nicklaus Companies for his idiosyncratic benefit.

At the clip of that lawsuit, Nicklaus said successful a statement: "The claims made by Howard Milstein are untrue. Our narration has been a hard one, astatine best. I person small uncertainty astir the outcome, but I don't mean to marque this a nationalist spectacle, if it tin beryllium avoided."

A Florida arbitrator ruled successful July 2024 that Nicklaus was nary longer restricted by the noncompete clause and was escaped to plan play courses.

In April, New York Civil Division Supreme Court Justice Joel M. Cohen ruled that Nicklaus had the close to usage his ain name, representation and likeness, portion Nicklaus Companies owned the trademarks it purchased and could proceed to merchantability apparel and instrumentality with the Nicklaus' name, "Golden Bear" moniker and logos.