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Tiger Woods finds himself in the bunker with his new logo.
The golfer’s Sun Day Red apparel line is facing a trademark dispute from Tigeraire, a company that makes cooling products for athletes. Tigeraire filed a notice of opposition with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office accusing Woods and his company of “unlawfully hijacking” the company’s logo into their own.
In May, Woods moved away from his longtime personal “TW” logo that featured his initials stacked on top of each other, which was a staple during his 27-year tenure with Nike. Woods still owns the trademark for that logo, but doesn’t currently plan to use it with his new company.
Both logos are images of a tiger running (below; Opposer is Tigeraire, and Applicant is Tiger Woods Sun Day Red brand).
U.S. Patent and Trademark Office
The Sun Day Red line, which is a partnership between Woods and TaylorMade Golf, is an ode to Woods wearing red on Sundays of tournaments, and the logo was made with his 15 major wins in mind.
“The actions of SDR, TaylorMade and Tiger Woods blatantly ignore Tigeraire’s long-standing protected mark, brand and identity, violate federal and state intellectual property law, and disregard the consumer confusion their actions create. SDR’s application should be denied,” the trademark filing said.
Tigeraire started in 2020 and originally partnered with Louisiana State’s football program to make a helmet that implements its cooling technology. Over time, the company developed other cooling products for athletes, including wearables, and expanded its product line to benefit golfers by developing fans that could attach to the bill of a cap to keep players cool through 18 holes. This likely adds to its concern of consumers confusing Sun Day Red’s logo with its own.
“It will depend on things like how many other leaping tiger logos are registered or in use for similar goods or services,” Carissa Weiss, a trademark lawyer based in New York tells Front Office Sports.
“At face value, the question will be, would an ordinary consumer look at the Sun Day Red logo and confuse it with Tigeraire?” Trademark disputes typically begin with one party sending the other a cease-and-desist letter–which may have already happened, Weiss says. But “if they’re already up to a court filing, Sun Day Red is resisting because they think the marks are different enough.”
Woods and TaylorMade have 40 days to respond to the filling.
Sun Day Red products are currently available only on the company’s website and will likely stay that way until 2025, when it plans to enter the wholesale market and add junior and women’s gear in addition to its men’s line.
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