Professional Golfers Getting Nailed For Tax Evasion
Sports professionals are infamous for getting into strange tax schemes. Lately, it's been the professional golfers that have been going down on tax evasion charges.
The more money you make, the more the government is going to take from you. Professional golfers don't make the kind of money you see with the NBA for example, but they do make millions over time if they are good enough to stay in the upper half of most tournaments. Throw in sponsorship money and it is a very nice lifestyle. That doesn't mean they don't try to illegally keep more of their money than they should.
Jim Thorpe is a well known golfer. He was a solid pro on the PGA tour for twenty plus years and then went on to do very well on the Senior's Tour. He won three times on the main tour and another 10 on the Senior's. He made millions in winnings and sponsorships. Unfortunately, he didn't report it all. In fact, he pled guilty on charges of failing to pay $1.6 million in taxes. As part of his plea agreement, he will pay two million in back taxes and penalty as well as spend a year in jail.
Tax evasion is not just a problem for professional golfers in the United States. In Europe, professional sports players often change their residency to Monaco to avoid paying high taxes. Danish golfer Soren Hansen did this. Unfortunately, a court found he actually was living in Denmark during the four year time period in question. Since he had not paid taxes during this time in the country, he was found guilty of tax evasion and fined a total of $1.1 million in back taxes, penalties and interest. Fortunately for him, there was no move to put him in jail.
Paying taxes is something you have to do whether you are rich or not. It is entirely legal to take every tax avoidance step you can to minimize your tax burden. When you step over the line into illegal strategies, you commit tax evasion which is another thing all together as Jim Thorpe and Soren Hansen can tell you.