Titleist wins latest court verdict in ongoing ball issue with Callaway

CHASKA, Minn. (AP) -- The golf ball war between Titleist and Callaway is headed back to the first tee.

In a big victory for the parent company of Titleist, a federal appeals court last week ordered a new trial in its contentious golf ball patent dispute with Callaway. Acushnet Co. said the three-judge panel found inconsistencies in the jury's verdict, and that the trial court erred by not allowing a defense and the evidence to support it.

The decision also means Titleist can sell golf balls that were at issue in the lawsuit.

Callaway sued in June 2007, claiming that Titleist's popular Pro V1 line of balls infringed on several of its patents. Since then both companies have filed patent infringement lawsuits against each other.

"This very positive Court of Appeals ruling affirms our contention that we were not allowed to argue our full case before the jury, and that the resulting verdict was inconsistent and not sustainable," said Joe Nauman, the executive vice president in charge of legal and corporate matters at Acushnet.

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