WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — The PGA Tour is depriving golf fans by barring LIV Golf participants from playing in its tour events, a lawsuit filed in Palm Beach County claims.
According to the lawsuit, filed Tuesday on behalf of Boca Raton attorney Larry Klayman, the PGA Tour and its partner, the DP World Tour, are listed as defendants. It claims that suspending golfers who play in the LIV Golf tournaments is anti-competitive in the free-agent marketplace.
The lawsuit, which is seeking class-action status, claims Klayman purchased admission to three PGA Tour events and "is committed to" purchasing tickets to the Players Championship and the Honda Classic. As a result, Klayman claims "the proposed plaintiff class of similarly-situated Florida residents have suffered damages greater than $30,000."
PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan, who is also named in the suit, suspended 17 golfers, including Phil Mickelson and Dustin Johnson, who took part in the debut LIV Golf event earlier this month.
According to the lawsuit, the suspensions were meant "to discourage skilled, popular professional golfers from participating in LIV Golf tournaments and to thereby prevent LIV Golf from competing effectively" in the U.S. and Europe.
More golfers have since defected to LIV, including Jupiter resident and Palm Beach County native Brooks Koepka.
The lawsuit is seeking damages of at least $30,000 and a jury trial.
