Honorary starter Arnold Palmer has his jacket collar adjusted as he poses with Augusta National chairman Billy Payne after hitting his tee shot on the first hole at Augusta on April 9, 2009. (TIMOTHY A. CLARY/AFP via Getty Images)
Police Officer Darren Lovell said golf legend Arnold Palmer’s green jacket, which Palmer won after winning the Masters four times, was among items stolen from Augusta National Golf Club over a 13-year period.
Federal investigators did not mention Palmer’s green jacket, and Augusta National Golf Club officials did not acknowledge it was missing.
Richard Brendan Globenski was charged this week by federal authorities with transporting and transferring millions of dollars worth of stolen property and memorabilia from Augusta National Golf Club between 2009 and 2022. According to federal documents, Globenski transported the items from Augusta, Georgia, to Tampa, Florida. Federal authorities believe Globenski knew the items were stolen when he transported them.
According to the Chicago Tribune, Grobenski was the former warehouse coordinator at Augusta National, where he oversaw the annual Masters merchandise sale and had access to merchandise and memorabilia.
The jacket was recovered during an FBI investigation in 2022 and a private sale was arranged: A member of Augusta National reportedly knew Palmer’s jacket was missing and contacted a collector with a reputation for finding rare items, with the goal of recovering the jacket under the guise of a sale, prosecutors said.
The jacket was found, verified as authentic, and arranged to be sold for $3.6 million. The buyer/collector met with the seller and paid a deposit to receive the jacket. Upon leaving the seller’s home, the pair were approached by FBI agents, who seized the jacket. Federal agents also questioned the seller.
After Palmer’s death in 2016 at age 87, Augusta National paid tribute to the four-time champion by hanging his jacket on a chair on the course during the Masters. Palmer owned several green jackets, but the stolen jacket – believed to be from his 1958 Masters victory – was not among the actual winners’ jackets.
