A former Augusta National Golf Club employee accused of stealing millions of dollars worth of Masters memorabilia pleaded guilty in a federal court in Chicago on Wednesday and now faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison.
Richard Globensky, who worked as a warehouse assistant at Augusta beginning in 2007, was indicted last month by federal authorities for transporting Masters items stolen from 2009-22. Among the stolen items was Arnold Palmer's Green Jacket from his first Masters win in 1958, as originally reported by cllct last month. ANGC had never publicly acknowledged Palmer's jacket as missing from the club.
According to the Chicago Tribune, Globensky’s plea deal includes an agreement to provide the government a cashier’s check for $1.5 million in the next few days.
Globensky, 39, admitted to coordinating with a Florida-based memorabilia broker to sell the stolen items in online auctions. In addition to Palmer's Green Jacket, the Tribune reported the list of stolen items also included Green Jackets given to Ben Hogan and Gene Sarazen, as well as memorabilia such as Masters tickets dating back to the 1930s.
The scheme reportedly netted Globesky more than $5 million and incurred losses of more than $3 million to Augusta. He is expected to face around two years in prison under federal guidelines, with sentencing scheduled for Oct. 29.
Will Stern is a reporter and editor for cllct.