All billionaire T. Boone Pickens did was give a humble $165 million to his alma mater, Oklahoma State University, to fund a charity for the benefit of the school’s golf program, and that has teed off some folks. According to The New York Times, not long after the money landed at the school, the charity, O.S.U. Cowboy Golf, invested it in BP Capital Management, a hedge fund run by Pickens. Mike Holder, who sits on the board of the fund, says it was his decision to put the money in BP and denies that Pickens made it a condition of the contribution. The billionaire, according to the Times, got a nice tax break for the donation, thanks to a clause in Hurricane Katrina relief law that allowed “a deduction for charitable gift equal to 100% of his adjusted gross income,” double the norm. Some lawyers question whether Pickens should get the deduction, given where the money ended up, though they say it’s all legit. Making the point that there is no conflict, Pickens spokesman Jay Rosser told the Times, “We’ve waived all fees and our share of the profits on their investment.”
