Hicks
Hicks v. PGA Tour, Inc.
Opinion
Lead Opinion
Chhabria, J.
ORDER GRANTING MOTION TO DISMISS, DENYING MOTION TO STRIKE
Re: Dkt. Nos. 79, 80,
This case is about the “bibs” caddies wear during golf tournaments sponsored by the PGA Tour. These bibs display the name of the golf tournament, the name of the golfer for whom the caddie works (on the back), and often corporate logos. The bibs generally look like this:
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SAC ¶ 1.
Recently there has been great strife between the caddies and the Tour, with caddies complaining that their working conditions are poor and that the Tour does not treat them with common human decency. To use one high-profile example, at a tournament in February 2015, play was suspended because of a thunderstorm with high winds. Players and other people were permitted to go indoors, while caddies were left to seek refuge under an open metal shed or in their vehicles. This prompted ESPN analyst Scott Van Pelt to opine that the PGA Tour “treats its caddies like outside dogs.”
Caddies are now fighting back. As part of this fight, 168 caddies have sued the PGA Tour in federal court. The lawsuit is a proposed class action, in which the cad *903 dies seek to represent themselves and all other…