Hole-in-one prize winner sues after country club withdraws prize
Austin Clagett poses with his hole-in-one ball and what he thought would be his prize. (Faulkner County Circuit Clerk Records)
An Arkansas golf club is being sued over not awarding a prize of a new pick-up truck that was offered if a competitor hit a hole-in-one on the 10th tee.
Austin Clagett sunk a hole-in-one at the Morrilton Country Club. And expected to get the keys to a Ford F-150 courtesy a local dealership.
Little did he know, the hole-in-one would launch a legal battle.
The car wasn’t awarded to him after all, and he filed a lawsuit against the country club and the dealership.
"When it was Austin Clagett’s turn to try to get a hole-in-one, Austin Clagett hit the ball and it went in the hole on the first attempt," a news release from the law firm of Denton & Zachary said, via KATV. "Afterward, Morrilton Country Club and Jay Hodge Ford of Morrilton refused to give Austin Clagett the keys or transfer him the title to the 2022 Ford F-150 4x4 Supercrew."
Jay Hodge Ford said the management at the golf course wanted to provide the truck as a prize the dealership was unable to fulfill the request due to the lead time required to provide insurance for a Hole In One Vehicle. The dealership said that was clearly communicated to the club and it agreed that the dealership would provide a new truck for display/advertising purposes only.
In a Facebook post the dealership said, "Without our knowledge, Morrilton Country Club promoted that this new truck would be available as a winning prize at the event despite our agreement that it would be for display purposes only."
The lawsuit seeks damages valued at the truck’s sticker price — about $53,000 — as well as the cost in legal fees.
The country club has not responded to requests for comment.
The dealership said, "Without our knowledge, Morrilton Country Club promoted that this new truck would be available as a winning prize at the event."