American Tiger Woods lines up on his second putt during the second day of the Open at Royal Troon, South Ayrshire, Scotland. Image date: Friday, July 19, 2024.
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A logo dispute between Tiger Woods' clothing company Sun Day Red and Tigeraire, a company that makes cooling products for athletes, is now in the federal court system.
Last week, Tigeraire filed a notice of objection against the Sun Day Red tiger logo with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, claiming the golf legend's company “unlawfully hijacked” Tigeraire's design and incorporated it into its own brand.
in a Subsequent court filingsWoods' legal team sued Tigeraire, accusing the company of trying to capitalize on Sun Day Red's status as a larger brand. Sun Day Red has filed a motion to dismiss the patent claims.
“Unfortunately, this case presents a well-worn situation in which an opportunistic, misleading enterprise attempts to transform itself from a larger, more successful company based on the threat of legal action and the demand for exorbitant sums of money,” the lawsuit states. Make unfounded windfall profits from your brand.
Applicant’s trademark and registered trademark.
USPTO
According to the lawsuit filed last week in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, Sun Day Red said it has tried in good faith to resolve the infringement claims through negotiations and that Tigeraire has made “outrageous monetary demands” to Sun Day Red, which owns All owned by TaylorMade.
The lawsuit also alleges that Tigeraire recently began participating in golf tournaments and changed its website homepage to feature golfers in an attempt to demonstrate market overlap.
Tiger Air did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the lawsuit. Representatives for Woods and TaylorMade declined to comment.
Tiger Woods and TaylorMade Golf's new apparel and footwear brand “Sun Day Red” at the Palisades Village in Pacific Palisades, California on February 12, 2024 Details of the hat and club covers shown during the press conference.
Kevork Djansezian | Kevork DjansezianGetty Images Sports | Getty Images
Trademark attorney Josh Gerben called the lawsuit a “positive response” to the trademark dispute.
He noted that for a small company like Tigeraire, filing suit in federal court would make the matter expensive.
“A lot of times, these cases favor the party that has the resources to litigate, and that can be a challenge,” Gerben said.
Sun Day Red launched in May after Woods ended a 27-year relationship with the brand. Nike.
Woods previously said the brand's name was a nod to the fact that Woods always wears red on Sundays, while the logo pays homage to the 15 majors he won during his career.