Thorpe Gets Prison Sentence for Tax Evasion


Jim Thorpe, a three-time winner on the PGA Tour and a 13-time winner on the Champions Tour, has been sentenced to a year in prison for failing to pay more than $2 million in income taxes.

A Florida court ruled that the 60-year-old, who pleaded guilty last September, must surrender to the Bureau of Prisons by April 1 to begin serving his sentence. Once released from prison, Thorpe will have two years of supervised release and 200 hours of community service. He must also make efforts to repay the taxes while on supervised release.

Thorpe's lawyer Mark Horwitz said on Friday that Thorpe, who accumulated more than $13 million over his career, "has accepted his punishment and will be getting on with his life."

Thorpe, one of 12 children and the son of a golf course superintendent, faced up to two years in prison. Prosecutors said that in 2002, '03 and '04 Thorpe did not file an individual tax return until after he was confronted by special agents of the Internal Revenue Service.

According to court documents, the amount of unreported income for the three years was $5.36 million and the tax loss was $2.06 million.