Lawsuit accuses father of top MLB draft pick of violent attack at Kerrville country club

Phillip Lacy, 55, accused of severely injuring 74-year-old man after two-handed shove

Phillip Lacy was criminally charged with injury to an elderly individual in connection to an incident in February 2019. (Gillespie County Jail, March 2019, Gillespie County Jail)

KERRVILLE, Texas – The father of a former Kerrville Tivy High School baseball star taken fourth overall in this summer’s Major League Baseball draft is accused of severely injuring a man during a 2018 altercation at a golf course, court records obtained by the KSAT 12 Defenders confirmed Wednesday.

A counterclaim filed in Kerr County district court this week states that Phillip Lacy, 55, caused severe bodily injury to a 74-year-old man after shoving him at Riverhill Country Club nearly two years ago.

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Lacy was criminally charged with injury to an elderly individual in connection to the incident in February 2019, court records confirm.

Lacy’s son, Asa Lacy, was a star pitcher at Texas A&M University after a standout career at Tivy High School.

Asa Lacy, who is not mentioned in the suit, was drafted fourth overall by the Kansas City Royals in June’s MLB draft.

An attorney listed for Phillip Lacy did not respond to a phone call seeking comment Wednesday. A person from his law firm returned the call but said the attorney is traveling and will be available for comment on Thursday.

Phillip Lacy, who was golfing with friends during the September 1, 2018 incident, confronted a 16-year-old who had hit an approach shot that landed 30-40 feet from Lacy and one his playing partners on the 18th hole, the suit states.

Lacy began shouting at the teen, walked over to the teen’s ball and picked it up and then threw it at him, according to the lawsuit.

An employee of the country club drove up the fairway to try to intercept Lacy, fearing for the teen’s safety, the suit states.

“Lacy looked wide-eyed, ‘pissed off,’ and angry as he shouted and cursed at (the teen). (The teen) was shaking and crying as he apologized to Lacy for hitting into his game. But Lacy would not calm down. Instead, Lacy shouted ‘Are you f---ing retarded?’ as he physically threatened (the teen),” according to the suit, which does not name the teen because he was a minor at the time of the incident.

The alleged victim, who lives along the course and was walking his dog, witnessed Lacy shouting at the teen and approached Lacy to tell him that he would talk to the teen and his coach to explain what happened.

“Then, out of nowhere, Lacy took two quick steps toward (the man) and struck him in the chest with an explosive, two-handed, upward shove. It was not a light push. It was an aggressive, upward shove, like a football player would use to ‘pancake someone',” according to the suit.

The alleged victim was caught off-guard by the “explosive blow” and landed on his upper back, leaving him “dazed and bleeding on the ground,” the suit states.

The suit also states that Lacy had been drinking during the round of golf and prior to the altercation.

The alleged victim, a retired coach and athletic director, suffered a dislocated shoulder and tendon damage that required surgery and continues to have cognitive issues after striking his head on a root-covered area of the golf course, his attorney told the Defenders Wednesday.

“Lacy looked down at his victim and said, ‘Do you want some more?’” according to the suit.

The alleged victim’s dog also suffered damage to one of its legs after the man fell on it.

The countersuit, which also names Lacy’s two playing partners, the operator of the country club, the country club and its general manager, was filed after Lacy filed suit accusing the alleged victim of verbal assault.

A woman who answered the phone at the country club Wednesday said the club’s general manager no longer has an office on-site, but that she would forward the Defenders message seeking comment.

Kerr County court records show Lacy’s trial was postponed in early June.


About the Author:

Emmy-award winning reporter Dillon Collier joined KSAT Investigates in September 2016. Dillon's investigative stories air weeknights on the Nightbeat and on the Six O'Clock News. Dillon is a two-time Houston Press Club Journalist of the Year and a Texas Associated Press Broadcasters Reporter of the Year.