Greg Norman, Chris Evert finalize divorce in secret

CANBERRA (Reuters Life!) - Australian golfer Greg Norman and wife of 18 months, former tennis champion Chris Evert, have reportedly made their split official with a secret divorce filed in an obscure Florida courthouse.

The pair, who split last September, claimed in a court document that their brief 18-month marriage was "irretrievably broken," according to Australian Associated Press (AAP).

The divorce, Norman's second in just over two years, did not involve an expensive carve-up of assets, with Norman and Evert having signed a pre-nuptial agreement before they married under high-security in the Bahamas on June 28, 2008.

Norman's ex-wife Laura Andrassy received $103 million at the end of a bitter divorce with the former golf number one.

But the Palm Beach Post newspaper reported "there was no exchange of money between Norman and Evert" and the two would abide by the pre-nuptial deal, reached just weeks before their marriage, according to AAP.

Both Evert and Norman control multi-million dollar empires based on their sporting successes, and both would take back what they brought to the marriage, the Post said.

"The bonds of marriage between petitioner/husband, Greg Norman and respondent/wife, Chris Evert, are dissolved, because the marriage is irretrievably broken and the parties are restored to the status of being single," according to the court decree obtained by the paper.

Norman, 54, and Evert, 55, had not spoken of divorce following their high-profile split, which friends attributed to a clash of "huge egos." Their marriage was Evert's third and Norman's second.

Norman and Evert made headlines in October 2006 when they filed for divorce from their respective partners. Norman divorced former flight attendant and wife of 25 years Andrassy, while Evert split with former Olympic ski champion Andy Mill, with whom she had three sons. Evert divorced British tennis player John Lloyd in 1987.

Norman had credited relationship with Evert for "revitalizing" his life and bringing him balance.

At the time of her split with Mill, Evert controlled assets worth $24 million, while Norman's net worth is estimated at around $500 million.

Norman's court battle with Andrassy lasted for nearly two years in the Florida court system before they agreed to a carve-up of their fortune. Norman's businesses interests include MacGregor Golf and Greg Norman Golf Course Design.

Andrassy's settlement included a $50 million one-off payment, $500,000 in jewelry, a Range Rover vehicle and personal items, such as four paintings of dogs and Christmas decorations.

The deal also guaranteed the couple's adult children, Morgan-Leigh and Gregory, would get Norman's prized gold trophies and $103 million in cash when he died.

(Reporting by Rob Taylor; Editing by Miral Fahmy)