Nick Dunlap’s year has been defined by highs and lows. He won the PGA Tour’s American Express in January, the first amateur to win on Tour since 1991, and turned pro in February. Then he endured some struggles adjusting to his new life but he recorded his second win of the season at the Barracuda Championship. Off the course, life has been a bit of an adjustment. That includes a messy dispute between Dunlap’s parents and his family lawyer and his agency, GSE Worldwide, and his day-to-day manager, Kevin Canning, who are mired in a legal dispute.
The claim, filed in March, said Canning told a potential client that Dunlap’s father, Jim, was a “drunk, controlling, alcoholic asshole” who is “too tough” on Nick Dunlap.
According to a story first reported by Sports Business Journal, “the family attorney, W. Scott Simpson, says Canning disparaged Dunlap’s parents, among other claims, while GSE’s lawyers have denied those allegations and in turn suggested Simpson helped fabricate those accusations in order to assert control over Dunlap’s business dealings. The family later maintained that many of Canning’s claims were not true.”
GSE inked Dunlap to a one-year contract in February. The sports management firm, whose clients include the likes of Bryson DeChambeau, Sergio Garcia, Sam Burns and 10 entrants in the 2024 Masters, had previously dealt with Dunlap’s NIL representation at Alabama.
“We began representing Nick Dunlap when he was a freshman in college and proudly negotiated a number of record-setting NIL deals on his behalf. We were honored when Nick announced his move into professional golf and acknowledged our role in his success,” GSE wrote in a statement sent to Golfweek.
SBJ reported that Canning handled his travel to tournaments and claimed he negotiated NIL deals with TaylorMade and Adidas during his days as a member of the Crimson Tide.
“In his first weeks as a professional, we secured Nick record-setting rookie deals for equipment, apparel and timepieces and commenced discussions for numerous additional opportunities,” GSE said in a statement. “It was highly unfortunate then, that Nick’s newly appointed personal advisors chose to cast baseless allegations in an attempt to keep GSE’s fees in connection with the record-setting deals that we negotiated on his behalf.”
Canning told SBJ that while working on a new player representation contract, rather than negotiating an agreement directly between GSE and Dunlap, Simpson structured a deal between GSE and a company called Nick Dunlap Golf, LLC (NDG).
Canning claims the structure was designed to give control over Dunlap’s marketing activities and revenues to Simpson and Dunlap’s parents, each of whom own 1 percent of the LLC.
Simpson cited a breach of contract by Canning, just five weeks after the contract was signed. The attorney filed an arbitration request with the American Arbitration Association (AAA), but Canning responded by filing suit in late April saying the claims were not arbitrable.
The Dunlaps in their claim said Canning approached an unnamed “new business associate” of the LLC during the week of the Arnold Palmer Invitational in early March and disparaged Dunlap’s father.
SBJ’s Josh Carpenter reported that “Canning claims the assertations are not arbitrable, as he did not sign the initial agreement and never agreed to arbitrate any claims submitted personally by Dunlap’s parents. Rather than Canning himself, GSE President Andrew Witlieb signed the contract. It’s not uncommon for the head of an agency to sign a contract rather than individual agents.”
Charlene Dunlap, Nick’s mother, says Canning had a “history of bad-mouthing both me and my husband.” He “regularly tried to divide the family in order to gain total control over our son.” She also claimed Witlieb attempted to bribe the family “after the issue with Canning became known.”
Simpson in an emailed statement to SBJ said of Dunlap’s parents: “They have been helping Nick adjust from being a college athlete at the University of Alabama to a very successful PGA Tour professional. Nick needs and deserves a great agency relationship.
“We have faith in the justice system, and we are confident the arbitrator and the federal court will review the facts and rule in favor of Nick and his family.”
GSE declined to comment for this story because it is an ongoing legal matter but concluded its statement saying, “This is the first time that GSE has ever been put in this kind of situation by one of its client athletes and we were left with no choice but to defend our firm and to take all actions necessary to protect our rights.”
A motion hearing in the case was held July 18 in Tuscaloosa before Judge L. Scott Coogler.