A lawsuit filed by Rodney Lingle and Greens Perfection, LLC, against Atlanta Athletic Club, superintendent Ken Mangum and the PGA of America over an incident during last year's PGA Championship has been settled.
A stipulation of dismissal was filed Feb. 1 in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Mississippi, Delta Division. According to court documents, "all issues in this matter have been resolved, and Plaintiffs do not wish to pursue this matter further. Plaintiffs hereby stipulate to dismissal of this entire action with prejudice."
The suit originally was filed in late August of last year, claiming defamation in regards to communications about damage to the 14th and 17th putting greens on Atlanta Athletic Club's Highland Course on the eve of the first round of the PGA Championship. But the court documents indicate "defendants never determined and never intended to say that GreensPerfection brushes caused damage to any putting greens at the Atlanta Athletic Club in August 2011. In the press release issued by the PGA of America on August 10, 2011, and in a live television interview of Ken Mangum broadcast on The Golf Channel on August 11, 2011, the Defendant did not intend to represent that the brushes damaged the greens."
Mangum declined comment on the settlement. In a statement released to the trade press, Lingle says, "After the statements made at the 93rd PGA Championship, we felt a responsibility to our current customer's concerns, as well as potential customers, to make sure they knew our product was safe and effective."
Mangum, director of golf course and grounds at Atlanta Athletic Club, and Lingle, superintendent at Memphis Country Club, both are Certified Golf Course Superintendents, and both have been GCSAA members 37 years.
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