Why has Patrick Reed filed defamation lawsuit against Brandel Chamblee?
Patrick Reed on Wednesday filed a $750 million defamation lawsuit against the Golf Channel and analyst Brandel Chamblee. The American golfer pulled out of his initial lawsuit and refiled it after adding more defendants to his defamation claim.
Reed, who withdrew the original lawsuit filed in August in a Texas court, refiled it in federal court in Jacksonville, Florida. Reed’s attorney, Larry Klayman, moved the case to Florida, where the PGA Tour’s headquarters is stationed.
Meanwhile, the new lawsuit includes new names, including Golf Channel broadcasters Shane Bacon, Damon Hack, and Eamon Lynch, along with their media companies, Golfweek and Gannett, apart from Chamblee.
Patrick Reed’s defamation lawsuit
Patrick Reed has been at loggerheads with the Golf Channel and analyst Brandel Chamblee. He had earlier filed suit last month, claiming that Chamblee and the TV network were conspiring with the PGA Tour to defame him.
The 32-year-old alleged that the people mentioned in the case were in an attempt to "destroy his reputation" since he was 23 years old. He withdrew the suit on Wednesday, only to refile it with the added names.
Reed has now included the DP World Tour and its commissioner, Keith Pelley, in his lawsuit. He claimed that the people and organizations mentioned in the suit were trying to "create hate and a hostile work environment" for him while discrediting his accomplishments.
The golfer, who recently defected to LIV Golf, claimed that he had lost "multi-million-dollar sponsorship deals" in the past few years and was forced to resign from the PGA Tour.
Absolutely howling at this last paragraph in a press release I got on the new Patrick Reed lawsuit. The true Lady J! https://t.co/wv1YP1RrOk
The golfer’s new lawsuit claims that he was "falsely and maliciously branded as a cheater, liar, thief, murderer, and someone who accepts blood money from terrorists.” While not mentioned as a defendant, the lawsuit also slams the PGA Tour and its actions against the LIV golfer.
According to the suit, the defendants “conspired as joint tortfeasors for and with the PGA Tour, its executives, and [tour commissioner Jay] Monahan” against the golfer.
The lawsuit from Patrick Reed read:
“The defendants…misreporting information with actual knowledge of falsity and/or reckless disregard of the truth, that is with actual and constitutional malice, purposely omitting pertinent key material facts to mislead the public, and actively targeting Mr. Reed since he was 23 years old, to destroy his reputation, create hate, and a hostile work environment for him, with the intention to discredit his name and accomplishments as a young, elite, world-class golfer, and the good and caring person, husband and father of two children that he is.”
It further states:
“It is well-known on tour that Mr. Reed has been abused and endured more than any other golfer from fans or spectators who have been allowed to scream obscenities only to be glorified by Defendant Golf Channel for doing so, because it gets the Defendants ‘clicks,’ viewership, ratings and increased revenue.”
Patrick Reed's case
It is pertinent to note that analyst Brandel Chamblee has been highly critical of Patrick Reed in the past.
The golfer’s decision to leave the PGA Tour for LIV Golf and his rule violations were held against him by the analyst. This was claimed as being "personal attacks" by Reed.
Reed also claimed that he was “constructively terminated” by the PGA Tour in June as a result of his deal with the Saudi-backed LIV Golf.
However, the golfer revealed that he resigned from the PGA Tour during a press conference in Portland in June.