PGA Tour Sued for $50 Million by Caddies: Latest Updates, Details and More

A group of professional caddies has reportedly banded together to file a $50 million federal lawsuit against the PGA Tour. The focus is on the bibs they wear during events, which generate revenue that isn't shared by the Tour.    

Michael McCann of Golf.com reports the caddies, led by Mike Hicks, hope to make it a class-action lawsuit. He notes that would increase the group from 80 to about 1,000 and could leave the PGA Tour on the hook for a massive amount of damages if found liable:

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The caddies have petitioned the court to certify Hicks v. PGA Tour as a class action on behalf of all caddies residing in the United States who, without pay, wear or have worn bibs bearing the logos of the Tour's sponsors during tournaments. This proposed class would include about 1,000 caddies and potentially threaten the PGA Tour with hundreds of millions of dollars in damages.

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McCann states the biggest point of contention will likely be whether caddies are forced to wear the bibs. The plaintiffs say they are a required part of the uniform code, while the Tour is expected to argue there's no rule forcing them to wear them.

Stephen Hennessey of Golf Digest believes the caddies have a strong case to make:

Caddies are a constant presence during golf telecasts, even though most of them are rather anonymous. Per McCann, caddies have the opportunity to sign endorsement deals and wear sponsorship logos on their clothing, but the Tour bibs cover up their shirts.

Eugene Egdorf, the caddies' primary attorney, told Golf.com:

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Over the years, the PGA Tour and its sponsors have received literally hundreds of millions of dollars in value from endorsements from the bibs the caddies are forced to wear without any compensation whatsoever. ... The PGA Tour imposes all sorts of restrictions on caddies for its benefit, yet refuses to provide the most basic of benefits.

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The caddies are leaning on antitrust laws to support their claims, which don't stop there. Per McCann:

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In addition to antitrust arguments, the caddies assert intellectual property claims. Specifically, they contend that the Tour misappropriates the images and likenesses of caddies for marketing purposes without the caddies' consent. The caddies insist they never permitted the Tour to use their likenesses and images for commercial purposes, and never agreed to marketing companies on bibs to potential consumers. The caddies, moreover, charge they receive less in sponsorship agreements for their sponsorships since the prominence of bibs' size and colors covers or overshadows other pieces of clothing.

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The report cautions it's likely to become a long, drawn-out case that could take years. It mentions the PGA Tour possibly being unwilling to go through the "pretrial discovery" process as one of the few chances to reach a settlement before the sides dig in their heels.

While it's an issue many golf fans likely never thought much about, the bibs are surely going to get a lot more attention now as the caddies fight to get a chunk of the revenue from them.