Former Good Good Golf executive sues for defamation after ad backlash

Jeffrey Lefkovits, the fired vice president of brand and marketing for Good Good Golf, has filed a defamation lawsuit against the company and CEO Matt Kendrick. The lawsuit, filed on October 29, claims that he was scapegoated for the controversial advertisement promoting a co-branded Callaway driver, which was perceived as endorsing violence and led to several partnerships being terminated. The ad was quickly deleted after its initial release in late August, prompting significant backlash and resulting in leadership changes within the company. Lefkovits seeks $1 million in damages, alleging that the violent imagery in the ad was not part of his approved script. He contends that Kendrick had previously accepted responsibility for the advertisement before publicly shifting the blame to the marketing team.

• 1:30 PMYahoo Sports — Fired Good Good Golf executive files defamation lawsuit in aftermath of ad scandal