Prince Andrew gives up golf club membership in another blow to embattled royal after demanding jury for sex case lawsuit
PRINCE Andrew has given up his honorary golf club membership in another blow to the embattled royal.
The Duke of York, 61, gave The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews “notification” he wished to hand back his membership, the club said today.
Giving up his membership will be a humiliation for the duke who is a passionate golf fan, meeting many of the top names in the sport over the years.
And it is yet another blow for the shamed royal, who is said to be “on a collision course with the palace” after he sensationally demanded a trial by jury in his battle against sex abuse claims.
The prince is accused of sexually abusing Virginia Giuffre, 38, three times when she was 17.
Court documents from New York show he denies all of the allegations against him and “hereby demands a trial by jury on all causes of action asserted in the complaint”.
The Queen has already stripped him of his royal title as well as all his military honours.
And now, Andrew will no longer enjoy the perks of The Royal and Ancient Golf Club, where the duke was regarded as being a member in a private capacity.
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A spokesperson for the club, said: “I can confirm that The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews has received notification that the Duke of York will relinquish his honorary membership.
“We respect and appreciate his decision.”
The Duke’s love for golf is well-known, and he once sped away from a police officer who had pulled his car over because he was late for a golfing tournament.
But it’s understood he was stripped of several patronages relating to the sport this month, with 24 golf-related gongs appearing to have been removed from the Royal Family’s website.
Ms Giuffre has accused the Duke of forcing her to sleep with him more than 20 years ago at the home of convicted sex trafficker Ghislaine Maxwell.
The mum-of-three alleged in court documents that she was procured by Maxwell, 57, the daughter of disgraced tycoon Robert Maxwell, as a teenage “sex slave” for Epstein.
In an 11 page document, lawyers for Andrew set out the duke’s response to Ms Giuffre’s allegations.
It says he denies the allegation that he sexually abused Ms Giuffre when she was under 18 years of age.
The legal reply, submitted to the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, also sets out a series of defences “without assuming the burden of proof, and expressly denying any and all wrongdoing”.
This includes arguments that the claim should be dismissed because Ms Giuffre is a permanent resident of Australia and that by entering into the 2009 agreement with Jeffrey Epstein she “waived the claims now asserted in the complaint”.
The document concludes: “Prince Andrew hereby demands a trial by jury on all causes of action asserted in the Complaint.”