Tiger Woods’ ex-girlfriend has dropped a $30 million lawsuit against the 15-time major winner.

Erica Herman had filed a complaint against Jupiter Island Irrevocable Homestead Trust — a trust that Woods controls — last October in Marin County, Florida, alleging that the entity was in violation of the Florida Residential Landlord Tenant Act, with Herman seeking more than $30 million for damages suffered. She claimed “by trickery, agents of the Defendant convinced the Plaintiff to pack a suitcase for a short vacation and, when she arrived at the airport, they told her she had been locked out of her residence”.

In March, she filed a lawsuit alleging a non-disclosure agreement she signed should be declared unenforceable under the federal Speak Out Act. The act, which prevents the enforcement of NDAs in instances of sexual assault and harassment, was signed into law in December 2022.

But in May a circuit judge ruled against Herman, writing that Herman had failed to “provide factual specificity” regarding any accusation. On June 1, Herman and her lawyers asked the court to reconsider her case on four issues, most notably a lack of evidence, but a judge threw out the request. Herman had planned to appeal, but instead a motion to dismiss without prejudice was filed on June 29.

Herman, 39, was the general manager at Woods’ restaurant, The Woods Jupiter, and was first publicly seen with Woods at the 2017 Presidents Cup. She alleged in court documents that when they began to have a personal relationship, Woods and his lawyers required her to sign the NDA and threatened to fire her if she didn’t sign.

Woods, a three-time Open Championship winner, is not competing this week at Royal Liverpool as he continues to rehab following April surgery on his ankle.

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A judge has rejected claims by Tiger Woods’ ex-girlfriend that a previously signed non-disclosure agreement should be invalidated due to sexual harassment.

Erica Herman filed a lawsuit in March alleging an NDA should be declared unenforceable under the federal Speak Out Act. The act, which prevents the enforcement of NDAs in instances of sexual assault and harassment, was signed into law in December 2022. It is part of a wave of legislation spurring from the Me Too movement, with the law citing NDAs were found to perpetuate illegal conduct.

However, in an 11-page ruling in Martin County, Florida on Wednesday, Judge Elizabeth Metzger wrote Herman has failed to “provide factual specificity” regarding any accusation.

“In the instant action, Herman has not pursued any claims for sexual assault or sexual harassment against Defendant; she has solely pursued a declaratory judgment action and has only made vague and threadbare references,” Metzger said.

While Herman’s lawyer has questioned if she ever signed an NDA, Metzger said there is evidence that Woods and Herman negotiated the agreement back in 2017. As such Metzger said Woods and Herman must resolve the matter through private arbitration.

Preceding the March accusation, Herman filed a complaint against Jupiter Island Irrevocable Homestead Trust — a trust that Woods controls — last October that the entity was in violation of the Florida Residential Landlord Tenant Act, with Herman seeking more than $30 million for damages suffered. Herman claims “by trickery, agents of the Defendant convinced the Plaintiff to pack a suitcase for a short vacation and, when she arrived at the airport, they told her she had been locked out of her residence.” Court filings showed Herman shared the same address as Woods in Jupiter, Florida. Herman claims she was told she could not return to the house and “without legal counsel to aid in her in this emotional moment, they utilized a lawyer to confront her with proposals to resolve the wrongdoing they were in the midst of committing.”

Herman was the general manager at Woods’ restaurant, The Woods Jupiter, and was first publicly seen with Woods at the 2017 Presidents Cup. Woods is not in this week’s PGA Championship field as he continues to rehab following surgery.

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A complaint by Erica Herman, Tiger Woods’ former girlfriend, filed against Woods this week was preceded by litigation filed in October against the golfer, according to court documents.

On Oct. 26, 2022, Herman filed a complaint against Jupiter Island Irrevocable Homestead Trust—a trust that Woods controls—that the entity was in violation of the Florida Residential Landlord Tenant Act, with Herman seeking more than $30 million for damages suffered.

Herman claims “by trickery, agents of the Defendant convinced the Plaintiff to pack a suitcase for a short vacation and, when she arrived at the airport, they told her she had been locked out of her residence.” Court filings this week showed Herman shared the same address as Woods in Jupiter, Fla. Herman claims she was told she could not return to the house and “without legal counsel to aid in her in this emotional moment, they utilized a lawyer to confront her with proposals to resolve the wrongdoing they were in the midst of committing.”

Herman alleges she had an agreement that allowed her to live in the house for a certain amount of time. “The duties that were performed by, and expected of, Plaintiff were extensive and of an extraordinary nature in light of the overall circumstances and environment in which she lived,” the complaint reads. Herman says five years were left on the agreement.

Herman alleges she tried to return to the residence but was refused entrance. “Even worse, Defendant’s agents removed Plaintiffs personal belongings from her Residence and misappropriated in excess of $40,000 in cash that belonged to her, making scurrilous and defamatory allegations about how she obtained the money,” the complaint alleges.

On the civil cover sheet to the October complaint Herman responded with “no” to the question, “Does this case involve allegations of sexual abuse?” According to court documents filed this week against Woods, Herman answered “yes” to the same question.

Woods’ trust has responded by asking the court to compel arbitration rather than the matter being settled in state court, claiming a previously signed nondisclosure agreement called for arbitration for the matter. “Ms Herman alleges she negotiated the oral tenancy agreement with an ‘agent(s)’ of the Trust,” reads a response filed on Dec. 20. “In reality, Ms Herman was invited to live in the Residence while she was in a relationship with her former boyfriend, Eldrick Woods, who continues to live in the Residence with his two children. After Mr Woods recently terminated the relationship, Ms Herman was advised that she was no longer welcome in the Residence.”

The latest filing in the case was made on Jan. 19, 2023, in which Herman opposed the motion to go to arbitration and instead asked for the matter to be resolved by the court.

Herman was the general manager at Woods’ restaurant, The Woods Jupiter, and was first publicly seen with Woods at the 2017 Presidents Cup. Like Woods, Herman valued her private life, and had no social media presence. However, she would often be in attendance when Woods would compete, and Herman was with Woods last summer at the U.S. Open tennis championship to watch Serena Williams.

Woods’ agent has not responded to a Golf Digest request for comment.

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Let's just leave it to the pros to call "fore." (Wait for it)@Lexi ? pic.twitter.com/ivXE2orUOv

— Golf Channel (@GolfChannel) September 14, 2019

The response. The face. So good. But while the clip spread around Golf Twitter, it didn’t spawn a full-blown meme. I tried to push the issue, but like the word “fetch” in Mean Girls, sadly, it hasn’t really caught on:

Me when someone compares the Giants ownership to the Knicks. pic.twitter.com/Dv6Nr3pcbB

— Alex Myers (@AlexMyers3) September 16, 2019

Maybe I went too regional with a New York sports joke? I had been workshopping “Me when someone criticizes my diet” or “Me when someone asks about my chocolate addiction.” Maybe those would have played better? Oh well, I tried, Lexi. In any event, we promise to talk about some more important things going on in golf. And in the meantime, better safe than sorry with those “Fore!” calls.

WE’RE BUYING

Suzann Pettersen: Many people questioned Pettersen’s spot on the European team after essentially being on maternity leave for the past two years, but wow, did she come through with arguably the year’s clutchest putt and potentially one of the greatest walk-off moments in sports history. As in actually walking off into the sunset. The two-time major champ buried this must-make putt to claim the Solheim Cup and then immediately announced her retirement from professional golf:

Suzann Pettersen wins it on the 18th

After an @allymc10 miss on 17, @suzannpettersen makes birdie on the 18th to win the Solheim Cup for Team Europe! ???? pic.twitter.com/6nYPDZ4azP

— LPGA (@LPGA) September 15, 2019

What a freaking mic drop.

Joaquin Niemann: From one player perfectly finishing a brilliant career to another beginning one in style, Niemann rolled in a long birdie putt to cap a six-shot win at The Greenbrier to open the 2019-‘20 PGA Tour season.

What a way to wrap up the win. ?

A birdie at the last for @JoacoNiemann.

He shot 31 to win by SIX @GBRMilitary. pic.twitter.com/oIZfDtBKQi

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) September 15, 2019

How about this kid? And we do mean kid considering he doesn’t turn 21 until November. A late-season run allowed him to keep his PGA Tour card following his rookie season and now, who knows how good this former World No. 1 amateur can be. In addition to being the first golfer from Chile to win on the PGA Tour, he also joined Seve Ballesteros and Rory McIlroy as the only foreign-born players under 21 to win a tour event. DECENT company.

Sergio Garcia: We’ll keep the international accolades going with Sergio’s KLM Open victory, his 16th career European Tour title. Frankly, it was good to see Sergio making news for something other than destroying a golf course or throwing a putter at his caddie. And I love a good Azalea sighting:

https://www.instagram.com/p/B2eo4hjFUzD/?utm_source=ig_embed

We’re also buying the 18-year-old from Denmark, Nicolai Hojgaard, who he beat by one. I remember a teenaged Sergio challenging Tiger Woods at the 1999 PGA Championship like it was yesterday. Damn, I’m getting old.

Jack Nicklaus’ heroics: Jack may be closing in on 80, but the Golden Bear still possesses the magic that made him an 18-time major champ. First, here’s a walk-off putt to win a team event:

Good way to end the day!
Promised partner & longtime friend Tom Kelley I would share our fun. Tom & I won the Legends Division (small field?) today in 2-day @SycamoreHillsFW National Pro-Scratch Invitational.
Wanted to make sure on 18 that we didn't lose in a scorecard playoff! pic.twitter.com/8VSWYsmKH4

— Jack Nicklaus (@jacknicklaus) September 11, 2019

And then he had a walk-off chip-in to win a charity contest:

UNREAL ?@JackNicklaus drained his chip for charity on 18 at The @AllyChallenge. pic.twitter.com/YgWtasd14o

— PGA TOUR Champions (@ChampionsTour) September 14, 2019

You don’t win 18 majors by accident. What a legend.

WE’RE SELLING

Lexi Thompson’s week: What actually was that bad was Thompson’s 0-4 record. A tweaked back before her final match didn’t help matters, but if Thompson could have clawed even a half-point, Team USA would have retained the Cup. Ouch. Instead, America’s highest-ranked player got shut out, while the world’s 620th-ranked player wound up being the hero. That’s golf, folks.

Scottie Scheffler’s “shank”: This shot definitely didn’t need a “FORE!” call and yet the PGA Tour rookie was disgusted by it. Scheffler obviously hasn’t played with my boss, Sam Weinman, because he clearly has no clue what a shank is.

If this is a shank, then sign me tf up pic.twitter.com/Na7vxbPf2R

— Amanda Rose (@AmandaGolf59) September 14, 2019

And you wonder why kids react like this on tee shots that end up 15 feet from the pin:

12-year-old Vince Komen just beat the Pros! ?#KLMOpen pic.twitter.com/R5gpCxMrNj

— DP World Tour (@DPWorldTour) September 12, 2019

Hideki Matsuyama, this is your fault.

Kevin Chappell’s weekend: First off, it was great seeing Kevin playing his first PGA Tour event in nearly a year after undergoing back surgery. It was even greater seeing him fire the 11th 59 in PGA Tour history on Friday at The Greenbrier. Yet with rounds of 73 and 72 over the weekend, he managed to finish T-47. In a tournament, he shot FIFTY-NINE! But again, that’s golf, folks.

ON TAP

The PGA Tour heads to Mississippi for the Sanderson Farms Championship, AKA that event where the winner gets a rooster trophy. Meanwhile, the BMW PGA, the European Tour’s flagship event, will be contested across the pond. This event was moved from May to September with all the PGA Tour schedule changes this past season. It will boast a better field than the Sanderson Farms Championship, but not a rooster trophy. Advantage: Sanderson Farms Championship.

Random tournament fact: Cameron Champ won the coveted rooster trophy last year. But he is still looking for his first top 10 of 2019.

Matt Sullivan

Heavy lies the rooster crown.

RANDOM PROP BETS OF THE WEEK

—Either event will produce a dramatic finish like the Solheim Cup: 1 MILLION-to-1 odds

—Joaquin Niemann will win again this week: 12-to-1 odds (Actual odds; the favourite to win that coveted rooster trophy!)

—Joaquin Niemann will win again at some point: LOCK

PHOTO OF THE WEEK

Move over, Alex Noren!

1,000 balls a day ?

Dutch amateur Koen Kouwenaar’s hands show how he's currently inside the Top 15 ?#KLMOpen pic.twitter.com/dhU7uNrtYP

— DP World Tour (@DPWorldTour) September 13, 2019

VIRAL VIDEO OF THE WEEK

Move over, Brooks Koepka!

Warm weather practice for @Kiradech ? pic.twitter.com/E9QewCPu4e

— GOLFTV (@GOLFTV) September 13, 2019

Long live The Barn Rat.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

“I’m done. I’m closing it down tomorrow.” —Suzann Pettersen. Funny, I said the same thing after my latest disappointing round on Saturday.

THIS WEEK IN CELEBRITIES PLAYING GOLF

From backboards to sneakers to golf clubs, Zion Williamson destroys everything he touches:

“He literally broke the club!”

Grown. Man. Strength. ?@Zionwilliamson pic.twitter.com/uRd3cV6WX6

— New Orleans Pelicans (@PelicansNBA) September 13, 2019

THIS WEEK IN TOUR PRO PUBLIC DISPLAYS OF AFFECTION COMPETITION

Tiger Woods and his girlfriend, Erica Herman, went to a college football game pitting their alma maters (Stanford and UCF) against each other:

https://www.instagram.com/p/B2eR1IWBPzw/?utm_source=ig_embed

And Erica’s Golden Knights are probably ready to declare themselves co-national champs again after drubbing Tiger’s Cardinal, 45-27. Ouch.

Julio Aguilar

That must have been a tense car ride home. And then Woods’ Oakland Raiders got run off the field by the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday. Tough weekend for Tiger.

THIS WEEK IN TOUR PROS ARE JUST LIKE US

Justin Thomas shared his recent skin cancer scare and provided an important PSA for golfers everywhere:

https://www.instagram.com/p/B2Utje_BIq5/?utm_source=ig_embed

Also, JT, you might want to ask Phil for some calf exercises. Speaking of Phil. . .

THIS WEEK IN PHIL BEING PHIL

Phil philmed his latest edition of “Phireside Chats” from one of his phavourite restaurants in San Diego:

I was at Addison’s (best restaurant in SD and has 1 Michelin star) and I saw a fireplace. So I shot a quick Phireside with Phil. pic.twitter.com/jVqhxzcSDJ

— Phil Mickelson (@PhilMickelson) September 15, 2019

We were wondering when he was going to start turning these into ads. Can’t wait for him to start slipping in some product placement! Also, Phil got word of this fantastic painting of him:

Now this is……….AWESOME ! https://t.co/i2DsU016e4

— Phil Mickelson (@PhilMickelson) September 16, 2019

Hopefully, that artist got PAID.

THIS AND THAT

Tiger Woods announced the One Bahamas Fund to help raise money for the area after Hurricane Dorian. You can donate here. Check out our Brian Wacker’s piece on Dorian’s devastating effects and donate here. . . . Viktor Hovland tied Bob Estes’ PGA Tour record by shooting in the 60s for a 17th consecutive round. Sorry, Bob, but I think your record is going down. . . . More stats! With a pair of 20-year-olds, Matthew Wolff and Joaquin Niemann winning in the same year, marked the first time since 1931 that three players under the age of 21 won on the PGA Tour in the same year. . . . Speaking of Young Gunz, 17-year-old Akshay Bhatia will make his pro debut this week at the Sanderson Farms Championship. He makes Wolff and Niemann look like grizzled vets. . . . And finally, these cookies are a new addition to Costco:

Let’s just say I’m not mad about it.

RANDOM QUESTIONS TO PONDER

Did Tiger and Erica make a bet on the Stanford-UCF game?

Did golf writers (over)use the phrase “Young Gunz” in 1931?

Is my chocolate addiction that bad?

The post Golf’s ultimate mic drop, Tiger Woods and his girlfriend square off, and the greatest meme that never was appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

By Alex Myers
Tiger Woods’ girlfriend, Erica Herman, became the latest person to be dismissed from a wrongful-death lawsuit involving a former employee at a Jupiter, Fla., restaurant in which Woods is an investor.

According to multiple reports, Herman was removed from the lawsuit filed in May by the family of Nicholas Immesberger, a bartender at The Woods Jupiter who died in a car accident on Dec. 10, 2018, after leaving the restaurant. Police said Immesberger’s blood-alcohol level was three times the legal limit at the time of the fatal crash.

The lawsuit claims fellow employees continued to serve Immesberger alcohol despite knowing he was a recovering alcoholic. It also contends Woods and Herman, the restaurant’s general manager, drank with the 24-year-old nights before the crash.

Woods was dropped from the lawsuit in June. Woods Jupiter Inc. remains a defendant in the case.

“We’re all very sad that Nick passed away,” Woods said in May after news of the lawsuit became public. “It was a terrible night, a terrible ending, and we feel bad for him and his entire family. It’s very sad.”

The post Tiger Woods’ girlfriend dismissed from wrongful-death lawsuit appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

If Woods stays in private housing, he’ll likely bring his personal chef, who is paid to cook, not watch him play golf. Oh, and he’ll have man’s best friend in tow when he travels. That would be his bodyguard, the big dude walking nearby who you shouldn’t mess with.

But, yes, that also means taking one of his three dogs along on most trips. There’s Taz, Yogi and Bugs. Only a handful of trusted individuals occupy the Woods orbit regularly as he competes. By now, it’s largely a recognisable group.

Mark Steinberg: Woods retained Steinberg as his agent in 1998 after fring Hughes Norton, and in 2011 Woods followed Steinberg from IMG to Excel Sports Management, where Steinberg is a partner and heads the golf division. A native of Peoria, Ill., Steinberg, 51, attended the University of Illinois and made the basketball team as a walk-on. In a 2016 interview, he said of his relationship with Woods: “We are unwavering in our commitment to each other.” Steinberg’s client list includes the likes of Justin Thomas, Justin Rose and Matt Kuchar.

Glenn Greenspan: Greenspan has been Woods’ spokesman since 2008 after leaving another high-profile job, that of the first director of communications at Augusta National Golf Club and the Masters Tournament. A graduate of Florida State University, where he covered golf for the sports information department, Greenspan, 60, came to Augusta National in 1996. Previously, the New York native worked for the PGA Tour and Gary Player Design.

Joe LaCava: LaCava has been on Woods’ bag since 2011, after working for Dustin Johnson for about four months. LaCava, 55, is a native of Newtown, Conn. His cousin, Ken Green, a former PGA Tour player, got him started in the field when he asked LaCava to replace his sister Shelley as his caddie starting in 1987. After three years with Green, LaCava began a 20-plus-year run with Fred Couples.

Rob McNamara: A contemporary who has known Woods since their junior-golf days in Southern California, McNamara is a vice president of Woods’ TGR Ventures. A graduate of Santa Clara University, McNamara, 43, is Woods’ most trusted confidant, and he usually can be seen walking in lockstep with Tiger at a tournament site. McNamara is a scratch golfer who worked at IMG from 2000-’05 before joining Tiger. He knows Woods’ swing and serves as a second set of eyes now that Woods has chosen to go without an instructor.

Erica Herman: Herman made her first public appearance with Woods at the 2017 Presidents Cup, where Woods was a captain’s assistant to Steve Stricker. Herman, 34, was a manager at Woods’ restaurant in Florida, The Woods Jupiter, and now lives with Tiger.

The post Tiger Woods’ girlfriend Erica Herman among golfer’s tight circle appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

By Alex Myers

Tiger Woods is enjoying a second stint as a Team USA assistant captain after receiving rave reviews for playing that same role at last year’s Ryder Cup. But while he’s “having a blast” with “a great group of guys” at this year’s Presidents Cup, it also appears that the 14-time major champ brought some female company with him to the New York City area.

For a second consecutive day, Woods was photographed navigating Liberty National with Erica Herman. And on Friday, Getty Images went as far as identifying Herman as Woods’ girlfriend. Here were the two together on Thursday:

Rob Carr

And here’s a slew of photos of the two on Friday:

Patrick Smith

Scott Halleran

Sam Greenwood

Scott Halleran

Sam Greenwood

Herman appears to be the same woman who attended the U.S. Open with Woods and his kids earlier this month. She was also the general manager of The Woods pop-up restaurant at the Genesis Open in February, according to this article from Woods’ website that she’s quoted in. Woods’ TGR Ventures runs that PGA Tour event, which Woods was committed to play until he withdrew with a back injury.

So it is unclear whether Herman is a business associate, friend, or actually Woods’ girlfriend, but she has been inside the ropes all week and she’s certainly dressed like the other significant others in attendance:

Rob Carr

And if they are a couple, we’re excited for Woods, who deserves some happiness after a pretty rough 2017. In any event, for inquisitive minds out there, Erica Herman is the mystery woman walking around with Woods this week at Liberty National. And we don’t expect—nor are we entitled to—any other info from Tiger on the matter.

UPDATE: Here’s a photo of the two on Saturday.

Rob Carr

Aww.

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