Golfer Sues Tournament for Allegedly Cheating Her Out of Prize Mercedes

Posted on September 14, 2023

Back in May at the Isleworth Golf & Country Club in Florida, Linda Chen hit a hole-in-one at a charity tournament to secure a brand new Mercedes E-Class. Happy to win a $90,000 car, she went to receive her prize but, alas, no dice. Event organizers claim Chen had more skill than she admitted, and as such, no Mercedes. Now, she’s taking the event organizers to court, looking for the car she claims is rightfully hers, or a cash payment of $90,000.

The story isn’t as straightforward as it may seem. Yes, Chen aced the 11th hole of the course, which should have secured her the aforementioned E-Class. The problem, as Fox News reports, is that she held status as a professional golfer between 1994 and 1996. She also allegedly signed an affidavit saying she had never operated at such a high level in the sport. Other pros participating in the tourney signed this document, which prevented them from getting the new Merc.

Chen argues that she has been listed as an amateur golfer with the U.S. Golf Association for over 15 years. She feels that her current status as an amateur and the time between her pro days and now make it fair for her to get the sedan. Event organizers disagree. They claim to have given out many car prizes in the past, but Chen’s situation is just a little too complicated.

Ultimately, Chen wants the vehicle or the cash and is suing to get it. For their part, tournament personnel seem willing to have the law decide who is ultimately right. “Court will reveal who is eligible, who is culpable, and eventually who is responsible for the outcome,” Tournament Golf Events owner Timothy Galvin told Fox News.

For the record, Chen isn’t even getting the latest and greatest E-Class, anyway. The fifth-generation model is actually on its way out, with the new car arriving soon. The exact spec of the E-Class she won wasn’t mentioned, but the sedan starts at $57,900.

As usual, no matter how the court decides, the only guaranteed winners here are the lawyers.

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