Jane Blalock v. Ladies Professional Golf Association
| Jane Blalock v. Ladies Professional Golf Association | |
|---|---|
| Court | United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia |
| Full case name | Barbara Jane Blalock, Plaintiff, v. Ladies Professional Golf Association et al., Defendants. |
| Decided | 1975 |
| Citation(s) | 359 F.Supp. 1260 |
| Court membership | |
| Judge(s) sitting | U.S. District Court Judge Charles A. Moye Jr. |
| Case opinions | |
| Decision by | Charles A. Moye Jr. |
Jane Blalock v. Ladies Professional Golf Association was an ongoing lawsuit that took place between 1972 and 1975, following a professional golf incident in 1972. A month after winning the notable Dinah Shore Colgate Winner's Circle in 1972, American golfer Jane Blalock was allegedly observed replacing her marker incorrectly at the Bluegrass Invitational during the 1972 LPGA Tour. Blalock was fined and suspended by the LPGA Tour executive board. The suspension led to a fair degree of press coverage, with Blalock filing an anti-trust countersuit in United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia shortly afterwards.
In June 1973, federal judge Charles A. Moye Jr. ruled that "LGPA players cannot police their own members," and that Blalock's suspension "was ill-founded." A court awarded Blalock damages the following year. The LPGA subsequently announced plans to appeal. The ongoing lawsuit led to the LPGA searching for its first commissioner, and after Ray Volpe was appointed to the role in July 1975, a month later the LPGA dropped its appeal and settled all claims on the Blalock case.
Jane Blalock was born in Portsmouth, New Hampshire on September 19, 1945. She began golfing at age 13, and won the New Hampshire Amateur five straight times beginning in 1965, plus the New England Amateur in 1968. Blalock attended Rollins College in Florida, graduating in 1967 with a degree in history. Prior to her playing the LPGA Tour, Blalock worked as a high school history teacher.
The first time Blalock played on the LPGA Tour was as an amateur at the 1964 Lady Carling Eastern Open. She finished T33.
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