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WINNER
Read Dave Austad's Embarrassing Golf Story
<< HONORABLE MENTIONS >> I once when into a pro shop and asked the pro
if he sold ball markers, to which he replied he did. I asked how much they
were and he told me a dollar. I produced the money and he reached in the till
and handed me a penny. I was too dumbfounded and embarrassed to say anything,
so I thanked him and left with new marker and the rest of my foursome laughing
so hard and saying there is one born every minute. One of the first times I ever went golfing was
with my Dad. I skipped a couple of the long holes so I didn't slow them down.
As we started the back, my Dad pulled one left into the trees. As he took a
swing at the ball, a bird flew out of the tree and hit him square in the
forehead. It must have thought he was swatting at the nest. I took my wife out on the golf course for her
very first time. On the first hole, as we were walking down the fairway, she
asked me how people didn't get hit by golf balls. I told her they just usually
don't because people yell four and most of the time you get missed. As soon as
I finished my sentence I was on the ground. A ball had nailed me in my back.
Luckily I was all right. My wife tells that story every time she talks to
people about her experiences on the golf course. I bounced a 4 iron approach on the cart path of
the 18th at Perham CC. When I got near the green I was told it veered hard
right and took a second bounce over a pop machine and thru a tiny window into
the pro shop. Naturally when I went in to retrieve the ball everyone was
waiting for me (and staring at the ball which was lying in the middle of the
shop.) Red-faced, but undaunted, I turned to the pro behind the counter and
asked him for a ruling on playing the next shot. The gallery loved it.
Several years ago I was playing in a tournament at the Twin Village Golf Club in Roscoe, NY. My foursome's tee off was delayed by rain for a while. Eventually, we got up on the first tee after waiting around and joking with the many people who had now gathered around as things were backed up quite a bit. I stepped up and swung my driver with a wet glove and wet grip. The club flew out of my hands and over my left shoulder right towards the clubhouse. The people sitting on the deck looked shocked at first. Then it was immediately clear that it was going over their heads and appeared to be going right into the picture window behind them. Luckily the way a club goes end over end through the air it curved a little and went up into the big maple tree next to the building. Of course, I had to go over and pick up my club in front of a group of spectators bent over double with laughter. I then had to tee up my ball and try this again. I must've driven it okay because I don't remember anything else embarrassing that day. Jim We were on the 6th tee of Memorial Golf Course
in Huron, SD. I was with four good friends, Paul, Rick and Craig. My friends
all stood behind the tee box as I teed off. Greg Disadvantage of marking your ball with your initials. When someone accuse you of hitting their ball and you argue that you didn't. The proof is when they show you yours with your initials. Michael My son went out for the golf team when in high school. In a JV match at the start of the season, he was playing with golfers that were much better then him. On the 7th hole, he pushed his drive for to right and low and behold it landed in a metal garbage can which was on the 9th hold tee box. The ball not only made a loud noise, it went round and round while settling to the bottom of the can. It drew a lot of attention, and quite a few laughs. Alan One hot, muggy, August afternoon a few years back, my foursome was teeing off on the 13th hole a 165 yard par 3 at Stonebridge country club in the Utica, NY area. At the time, I was wearing a hair piece which was attached to my head with two faced tape. My arrant tee shot went into the woods on the right side of the green so I proceeded to tee up again and hit a provisional ball. On my downswing, my hair piece flew off the back of my head and hung in front of my face covering my eyes. Needless to say, I never saw the shot, which by the way landed on the green and rolled into the cup. All I saw and heard was my group laughing so hard they were actually rolling on the ground. We never did find my first ball so I parred the hole with a hole in one. My friends refer to the incident as the "blind shot" and have told that story repeatedly at every golf outing in central New York. Sam I was on the tee of #4 Blue (par 5) at Tartan Park. I took the shot in my usual bad form, the ball hit the rocks about 30 yards in front of me (between the white and red tees) and rebounded to about 10 yards behind me. I did not par the hole. Dave While playing in a "scramble" with the men's club of my development, a fellow golfer in my foursome hit a great drive. I then announced that now I can "let it out" since the pressure was off me. I proceeded to drive the ball into the adjacent parking lot hitting at least 3 cars. I now never "brag" before I drive. Mel This happened many years ago on league day at our club which is along the James River. We had finished league play, had some refreshments and our supper. Then of course a few more refreshments. One of my team members challenged me to a driving contest for another round of refreshments. Now I could usually out drive him with a four iron. Of course we had a big gallery now. We flipped a coin to see who would go first. He teed up his ball and took a big swing. The ball went about 20 feet into a gully in front of the tee off box ,this brought a big laugh from the gallery .Now it was my turn, I got my driver out and was going to really hit one, I had won a driving contest not long before this with a drive of 272 yards. I teed up my ball and really hit it solid, but as luck would have it I pulled it and hit a tree in the gully. The ball came back over my head and almost hit the clubhouse which was about 30 feet behind the tee off box ,the gallery erupted with laughter ,of course I didn't think it was funny, but it really was my team never let me forget that ,we still talk about it. Maybe this is where the message "Don't Drink And Drive "got started .That's my most embarrassing golf story. Ken While at the first tee, naturally right in front of the club house, with a lake to drive over and multiple foursomes behind us, the head of my driver broke off and went sailing into the lake, along with my golf ball. Ouch!!! Steven One morning while playing a practice round, I was 1 under after the first 4 holes. Hole # 5 is a downhill par 3, 147 yards, with a creek in front of the green. I pulled my t-shot just a little left, leaving it on the side hill. I parked the cart on the path above and began walking down to my ball (I wear sandals without spikes) when I slipped on the wet grass, landing on my rump and sliding down the hill, my pitching iron accidentally hit my ball sending it rolling across the green (almost hitting the pin for a birdie...No such luck) It rolled over the small bank but stopped short of the creek. I pick myself up, half-heartedly laughed and walked across the green. As I took one step down the 3-4 foot bank...you guessed it....I slipped again, this time knocking my ball into the water, along with me sliding into the water. Now everyone was laughing even harder...and since I was half wet already, I decided to play the ball from the water. I ended up with a double bogey, but still had the last laugh as I ended the round with an even par score. Mark During High School I played on my schools golf team and we practiced at a local country club, Leawood South Country Club. One day on the 2nd hole, a par three, I snap hooked my shot left, past some trees into the area of some houses. Smash! We heard the sound of glass breaking. My conscious forced me to go over and make things right. As I approached the house an old woman came out to meet me. "Was that your ball?" she said. "Yes, Ma'am it was" I replied. She showed me what had happened. Apparently my ball went over her fence, through a tall window and landed in a Cockatiel Cage. Luckily there were no birds in there at the time or I might have killed them, But that pretty much killed my reputation on the golf team, nobody ever let me live it down. The worse part is every chance my father gets he like to tell whoever we are playing golf with that story. Matthew The most embarrassing thing that I have ever seen on a golf course happened when I was a caddie. A guest at the club was having a really bad day on the course and when he got to the center of the bridge over a pond at the 17TH hole, he completely blew up! He grabbed his clubs, bag and all from his caddie, threw them into the middle of the pond and said that he would never play this blankety blank game again! With that he trudged his way back to the clubhouse, mumbling and grumbling all the way. When he reached the parking lot, he noticed that his car keys were missing along with his watch and wallet. They were in his golf bag in the pond! Mike It was our annual block golf outing at the Lakeview resort in West Virginia. I was determined this year to win one of the two trophies for low score. Having been part of this outing for eight years, I was very familiar with both resort courses. On this particular day, we were playing the easier course, and the weather was simply perfect. The third hole was our first "prize hole", a uphill par 5 reachable in two with a pair of long hits. I rose to the occasion with my drive, placing it 265 yards out, and dead center in the fairway...setting up a potential eagle with just one more long ball. I grabbed my three wood...focused...and let it rip! The ball took the uncharacteristic flight plane of a stealth bomber...staying 3 feet off the ground...and, making a strong bank to the left, headed straight for a dense patch of forestry. As I lost sight of the ball between two oaks...I heard a loud bang. But this bang was not wood...it was metal. For a split second, I thought...maybe, an OB pole? But then, quickly following the bang, I heard the piercing shriek of a woman. This, I conceded, could not be good. I sheepishly walked towards the woods, wondering if it would not be wiser to simply take the penalty for a lost ball and move on. But, against my better judgment, I pressed forward. Three steps later, I saw the victim of my errant shot, in a most unusual setting. There, in the middle of the woods, was a lady holding my titleist... pointing to her armrest...yelling "Yeah, you hit my wheelchair right here in the side...on a fly"! I wasn't sure if she was furious, or still numb from shock. She calmed down quickly after that...we both had a laugh, and I made one last apology before asking her for my ball back...hey, it was a Pro-V1. To this day, I still think...if the ball had been only two feet higher.. Dennis I played in the Mankato State University fund raising tournament at the Mankato Country Club in the mid-70's. The event drew a large crowd then and continues to grow today as a number of professional athletes and other sports personalities from the Twin Cities area are involved. I played with a group from Key City Sports, a Mankato sporting goods company. As it came time for us to tee off, each player's name was read over a public address system and the crowd would become silent with all eyes fixed on the tee box! Needless to say when it came my turn to hit I could barely hold my club, as the crowd was intimidating. I hit my tee shot rather quickly and pulled a "rifle shot" to the left. Two older gentlemen were sitting on the bumper of their car parked on a service road to the left of the first tee, putting on their golf shoes. My "tee shot" hit the bumper of the car between them, caromed up in the air, and dropped on the other side of their car. I grabbed my bag and walked away from the tee without looking back. I walked past the old guys and their car as if my ball carried 300 yards down the fairway! Kevin One of the first times I ever went golfing was with my Dad. I skipped a couple of the long holes so I didn't slow them down. As we started the back, my Dad pulled one left into the trees. As he took a swing at the ball, a bird flew out of the tree and hit him square in the forehead. It must have thought he was swatting at the nest. Jason
It all happened in the light Colorado Air. I was
getting ready to tee off from the
10th Tee and noticed that our fairway was parallel with the opposite facing
14th fairway. Brian I was playing with 3 close friends 4 months
ago. We had a blind tee shot that sloped to the
right towards a large lake. I hit a great shot with a little draw away from
the lake. As we
got over the hill, I couldn't find a ball in the fairway. I walked down to the
lake and sure
enough, a titleist #2 was in the lake. It was only a foot from the edge, only
half
submerged. All I could think of was the commercial {entertaining your friends,
PRICELESS}. I
told my friends I was going to entertain them, then proceeded to hit a great
shot onto the
green. I was drenched with moss, mud and dingy lake water. They laughed and
told me great
shot. I cleaned up as best as I could as I walked to my ball. I placed a coin
behind my ball
and picked it up. After cleaning the ball, I noticed that my ID mark was not
on the ball. It
was the exact ball that I was using, but not mine. I had to go back and play
the shot over.
I will never hear the end of my mistake. Golfing at Phalen in St. Paul with my father-in-law, my wife's uncle and my son I was on my second shot which was in the fairway. Along the fairway was a chain link fence that bordered the driving range and ran parallel to the fairway. I hit my shot and it went 90 degrees from me and right through the chain link and it didn't even slow down. Needless to say I took a drop. Paul Coon Rapids, MN When I was first learning to play golf several years ago I had no glove or golf shoes, just a set of clubs, balls, and a few tees. One day my friend and I went to play and there was a large crowd awaiting their turn to tee off on the first hole. Our turn came and wanting to impress the crowd I took a mighty swing at the ball. Well, having no golf glove the driver slipped out of my grip on the follow thru, went high in the air over my shoulder, went over the club house and hit a car in the parking lot. Needless to say I was very embarrassed as the laughter roared thru the crowd of onlookers. John Just last week my wife and me we're out playing a round of golf, this was my wife's first time and I was trying to show her different parts of the swing, I had a shot in the rough and showed her how I swing to get out of the rough and when I swung I finished with a 3 iron that was broke in three pieces. The wife got a good laugh out of that. Allen One day I hit a shot that came to rest under a large oak. The tree was on the point of the left rough and the green was across the water. The carry was probably 30 yards, not really much. But the tree hang down low. So I tried to hit a low shot. I did, it was a sinking liner and went into the creek area but hit into the rocks above the water level but below the green level. It flew up and back and came down within a few feet of where I hit it from. Not that embarrassing you say. Well, I did it twice more before I finally got it across the water and over the green. Wiley
Four of us were on a golf Holiday in Scotland. One
of the courses we played was Royal
Troon, on a cloudy day with the winds a howling. I always thought that I had a way with animals but anything involving an animal and golf is not a good thing. About two years ago I was golfing with my father at Chili Greens golf course in Omaha. There are water hazards on the course with resident geese. Teeing off on the sixth hole I drove my ball near a small tree bordering the fairway. When I approached the ball, I was attacked by a goose who apparently believed my titleist to be her egg. I did not know geese to be vicious but this one chased me repeatedly, honking and trying to bite me. I had a club in my hand, but was not going to hurt a bird just so I could take my next shot. But after about the fifth attempt, I decided to drop a ball nearby and take my shot. Well, I rushed the shot and hit it straight at the clubhouse because I did not want to leave my back turned away from the bird for too long. All at once I heard the bird honk again and start after me, heard the ball nail the clubhouse, and noticed that everyone from the neighboring holes were laughing as they had witnessed the entire thing. Justin The day started like any other ordinary round of golf, until the third hole. After finishing up the hole I reached down to retrieve my ball from the cup when I heard a rip. The seam of my pants split wide open. This wasn't so bad, besides the ribbing from my buddies about the need to diet. I figured I would finish the front nine and run in and change and that would be the end of it. WRONG.. I hit the next tee shot into the woods and proceeding to look for it. Just my luck the rip in my pants caught onto a branch and turned the rip into a tear. Now it was hard to conceal my predicament. The fabric was flapping in unison to the flag on the green. And what matters worse is that we were playing in front of four women. The moral of the story is... if you rip your pants... hit it in the fairway! Jeff When I was just learning in college I hit a drive and hooked it badly. The only problem was that the hole was flanked on the left hand side by a four lane road with an island running down the middle. As I got to where I thought my ball hit the fence I realized it had cleared it. Being in college I couldn't afford to lose anything - even if the ball was neon orange and hard as a rock. So I did the right thing. I dropped my bag, scaled the fence, crossed all four lanes of traffic, walked over to the Hardee's drive through line, and - right in front of the pickup window - bent down and grabbed my ball from the dead middle of the drive-thru lane. You should have seen the look on the attendant's face as I showed her the ball I was picking up. I ran back across the street, re-jumped the fence, through the ball into the fairway and continued my round... Now that is being cheap. ;-) Leighton I was invited to a golf outing with a perspective employer. He wanted to have a relaxing day of golf while he interviewed me. It was a warm summer day he was wearing white shorts and a white polo. It was still wet out from a passing rain storm, we were warming up making practice swing my swings going in his general direction when I took an unexpected divot of mud all over his white attire. This was not a great career move on my part. Jim A couple of months back I showed up to a course as a single and was paired up with two gentleman known only to me as John and Bill. John was having a pretty rough day to say the least. I know he must have lost at least a dozen golf balls and was well on his way to his worst score in months. We reached the 14th hole a par 3, 186 yards mostly carry over a lake. I knew it was going to get ugly. John teed up last (he hadn't had honors all day) He proceeded to hit 6 straight balls into the lake. After which he strolled over to the cart unstrapped his golf bag and tossed bag, clubs and all into the lake. I couldn't believe what I was watching. John and Bill got into the cart and headed back to the clubhouse. I waved good-bye and continued on. After reaching the green I saw John and Bill coming back across the the 13th fairway. John pulls up to the lake, gets out, takes off his shoes and socks and proceeds to wade out into the lake. He grabs his bag and drags it to the bank. I stood their in amazement. I was thinking he had a change of heart and decided to retrieve his clubs. John begins searching through the bag compartments. Finally, he turns towards me, holds up his car keys and waves. He then throws his bag and clubs back into the lake. By the time they drove off, I was laughing so hard I couldn't putt. I finally did finish the hole, I three putted, but marked down a par. ( The distraction, had to be worth at least one stroke.) Mike As a beginning golfer I am still learning the rules of the game, how to swing, how to stand and where not to park the golf cart. The last item is where my story begins and ends sadly. I went golfing on a beautiful day with some of my college friends. Most of us have not been playing golf for too long, so we are still working out the kinks. The game starts off pretty slow, but we are gaining more confidence and becoming acclimated to the course by the 5th hole. I hit a pretty decent tee shot (I was happy with it anyway) and went to hit my second shot, mind you I was driving a cart by myself because of odd numbers. The second shot was pretty clear to the green. I drive up to my ball, and being left-handed parked the cart on the left side of my ball about 5 feet away. I ready myself to hit the ball, adjust my feet, make sure my grip is comfortable, etc. In my mind I see the ball soaring through the air onto the green. I swing my club and my ball flies parallel to where I am facing, it nails my cart roof and rattles around for a second before settling in the wire basket on the back of my cart. I immediately hear my friends behind me laughing and commenting on the "great shot". There is a group ahead of us on the next hole teeing off, they look over but don't say anything. So I think there is no way they could have seen that. I of course, am mortified, but the game must go on. The next hole is played without event, but my shot was still the topic of conversation. On the 7th hole, we have to wait to tee off, so we are sitting waiting in our carts, and the group ahead of us walks by. One guy walks past me and says "I just have to ask you one thing, Did it stay in the cart?" Micki Playing golf with a couple of friends during the Fall. The air was full of moisture. It actually had sprinkled on and off throughout the round. On the 18 th hole, where the second shot is over water, I muscled up and hit a 3 iron, only to see the club fluttering in the air and right into the middle of the pond. Bill After an errant drive, my friend dropped me off at the top of a steep embankment. I walked down the hill to try and find my ball. Soon she joined me leaving the cart at the top of the hill. After a short time I heard a whining noise much like a golf cart come down a hill. Sure enough, there was our cart coming down the hill picking up speed with our clubs bouncing around. As the cart passed me, I decided to run after it noticing the bank of trees it was headed for. I couldn't believe my eyes as it missed the trees. However, beyond the trees was a pond and yes, the cart went right into the pond stopping in water up over the wheels. I threw our clubs up on the bank and there we sat and roared with laughter. Soon the ranger came by and we said "we need another cart please" so he had one brought out to us and we were on way. The pro however, did catch up to us and we did get a bit of a talking to about setting the brake. I really enjoy walking while playing golf! Julie My regular foursome was just finishing the front nine of the Farmstead Golf Course in Sussex County New Jersey when the
heaven's opened. After about a thirty minute stay in the clubhouse the rain subsided and we resumed our round. On the tenth
hole I hooked my drive into the heavy wet rough. My playing partner on this day was a tall lanky gentleman probably 6'6" and
not even 200 pounds, about sixty years of age. George was a classic, never seen on a golf course without his straw hat and a
cigar hanging out of his mouth. As we drove in search of my tee shot George was sitting quietly with his left leg crossed
over his right in the cart. As I spotted my ball I turned the cart to the left to retrieve it but George kept going straight
out of the cart - his long lean body rolling over and over! Scared that he would be
severely hurt I slammed on the brakes and
ran to him. When I arrived there he was laying on his back with his legs stretched straight in the air - cigar still in his
mouth. I asked if he was hurt and he responded that he was not, that he used the "parachute roll" to save himself. He than
stood up calmly, walked back to the cart and finished his round, probably shooting the best back nine of his life. To this
day I don't know what the "parachute roll" is - this is a secret George took with him to that golf course in the sky a few
years later. He truly was a classic!
Mark
In the summer of 2001 I was in search of a new driver to cure my slice. No matter which proline driver I tried, I would still
slice the ball dramatically. Well I found a website that had a"cure-all" slice stopping driver. I decided to purchase the
components and build the club myself (saved a whopping 15 bucks). At the range I absolutely crushed the ball and it was
relatively straight! But none of my friends was there to see it. When I got home I called every one of them up to brag about
the length of my drives and how I was no longer slicing the ball. I finally convinced them to get together the next morning
for a round at the local public course. After much grandstanding and hoopla (I'll admit I was a jerk about it!) I "unveiled"
my self built driver. I teed the ball up nice and high and after waiting for the fairway to clear (they are still laughing
about that too), I swung that club as hard as I could and WHAM!.........the clubhead came clean off the shaft and ended up
about 100 feet behind the first tee in a golf cart, narrowly missing another golfer! If you listen very carefully you can
still hear all of my friends and about 20 onlookers still laughing, and the golfer I almost hit is still cursing!
P.S. I still slice like a maniac!
Carmine
Just started taking up golf in 2000, in spending lots of time at the driving range on the local course. One beautiful spring
morning the crab apple trees were all blossomed out and I was driving balls down range. An older lady and her husband came
over just as I hooked a ball into a flowering tree--heard a loud thud and saw something fall out. The lady walked over to
the tree and said " Put down the club killer--you have 2 dead robins over here."
John
In 1995, I had the honor of playing a few holes with President Bush (41) in a charity tournament. Accompanying the
President's regular detail that day was the President's personal photographer, the Tournament Director and staff, and a film
crew from the NBC Today Show. I was the last to tee off on a short par 3. After completing my swing the ball was only ten
feet in front of the tee. No one moved or said a word. Out of my embarrassment, I asked that everyone look towards the hole
and I held a great follow through swing high and asked the photographer to take a picture. It was a fantastic photo that
didn't tell the true story. President Bush's kindness and charity came through in many ways that day!
Rick
I took my wife out on the golf course for her very first time. On the first hole, as we were walking down the fairway, she
asked me how people didn't get hit by golf balls. I told her they just usually don't because people yell four and most of
the time you get missed. As soon as I finished my sentence I was on the ground. A ball had nailed me in my back. Luckily I
was all right. My wife tells that story every time she talks to people about her experiences on the golf course.
Rex
I was playing in a foursome of ladies. As we came to the first tee there were three men's
foursomes waiting to tee off. They told us to go first as they were all together. In our
foursome was my twin sister, and as many identical twins I am right handed, she's left. Also in the group was a retired spinster librarian who would blush if a man even looked at her. She went up to the tee box last and after teeing up her ball realized she didn't have her driver, but rather her golf umbrella. In her panic, she grabbed my sister's left handed club, lined
up on the ball and stared at the club saying "there's something wrong with your
club". She then picked up her tee and ball and got into the golf cart with a
blazing red face. The men were all gentlemen and didn't begin laughing until we
were well down the first fairway.
Joan
We had been invited by friends to play in a member-guest tournament at their country club. They alternated shotgun starts
from AM to PM over the two days. Our time for the first day was in the afternoon. As we were there early and I hadn't played
the course previously, I decided I'd use the time to go to the practice putting green that was nearby. As I was lining up my
first putt I was suddenly surrounded by four irate women, not knowing what was bothering them I preceded to make my first
practice putt and was sternly informed that I was on the green for the 9th hole. In retrospect, it was unusual to have a
practice green with only one hole.
Jack
About twenty years ago my wife and I were golfing with our friend, Mike, at our rural Iowa 9 hole country club.
The first tee was right beside the clubhouse. The clubhouse itself is a remodeled farmhouse, with a wrap-around screened
porch.
My tee shot went off the toe of my driver, ricocheted off the ball rack, bounced back between my legs, up the clubhouse
steps, through the clubhouse porch door, up the interior steps and into the clubhouse interior door, which by chance were
both being opened by other golfers at that exact moment.
My embarrassment in walking into the clubhouse to retrieve my ball was diminished a bit when I walked back outside and
realized that our friend Mike was kneeled down on the other side of the ball rack tying his shoe when I was teeing off. If
the ball had not hit the ball rack, it would have probably hit our friend in the head.
To this day, my wife stands behind me every time I tee off.
David
The most embarrassing thing that happened to me involved me and 3 friends and a golf cart and a tree. I was passenger in a
golf cart and my friend was driving. He pulled up to his ball and got out of the cart to get ready to hit his shot.
Unfortunately he asked me to move the cart out of his way. Instead of sliding over into the drivers position, I simply put
my foot on the gas and turned the wheel and to my shock I started falling out of the cart. The only way I could keep from
flying out of the cart was to push harder on the gas thus pushing myself harder against the seat. I was caught in a suicide
tight turn and I crashed right into a big tree and bush. I went flying forward and hit the tree very hard. Everyone I was
with was in shock and couldn't understand why I suddenly wrecked the cart into a tree for no good reason. I explained how it
happened and we all laughed about it. I was fine (a little bruised) but the cart was in pretty bad shape. I have to say
that it was the most embarrassing moment on the course so far for me. Thanks,
Sean
It goes like this!!!
Setup: A golf outing with people from work. Scramble format. About 20 people waiting to tee off and watching the groups ahead
of them.
I has just bought a new set of golf clubs, matching head covers, new bag, and new shoes. When it was my turn to tee off, I
stepped up to the tee and took a big swing at the ball hoping to impress the gallery. I looked down the fairway to see my
ball. I could not see the ball so I turned around to ask my playing partner if he saw the ball. At this time, everyone in the
gallery was laughing and pointing! Unbeknown to me, I hit behind the ball about a foot and dug up a divot that laid over the
ball so that it could not be seen ( except by everyone else)!!! My partner told me where it was and I was really embarrassed.
I proceeded to tell my partner that we would play his ball on this hole. Can you imagine? At my dismay, at the workplace, the
story was told many times over.
Chuck
I grew up playing golf in Orange County, California. My father and I learned together and took lessons at a small course in
Tustin that is no longer around. My father was a lawyer in Santa Ana for over 35 years before he died 6 yrs ago. He and I
used to play together at Anaheim Municipal all the time, I even got a job there when I was in High School. He had business
associates that helped me get the job there.
Well, my father was also very involved in the American Legion, being a veteran of several wars. He signed us both up for a
"Father/Son" Tournament through the American Legion that was at Anaheim Municpal("Dad Miller's" Course). Well, I did not have
my driver's permit yet, but my dad let me drive the golf cart that day. We were on about the third or fourth hole, and we
came upon the next t-box, and it was a pretty steep downhill. My dad told me to keep the wheel straight, and to not hit the
gas. Well, guess what I did-turned the wheel and hit the gas. I tipped over the cart in front of a bunch of his buddies, that
were stacked up waiting on the t-box. Needless to say, I was not allowed to drive the cart anymore that day.
Signed
The Tipped over golf cart guy...
John
I was playing at a local golf and was on the 8th hole and I was close to a tree. Very close. I wanted to try to hit around
the tree, (the key word is try). I actually seen this happen in detail before it
happened. I have had some premonitions
before. Really! I hit the ball-it hit the tree and the ball hit me in the chin. I finished playing the round which on this
golf course was only 9 holes. After I finished I went promptly to the Emergency Room to get my face
stitched up. 10 stitches to be exact. And I do have a witness to what happened.
This really did happen. Allen
I was in a two man scramble with a shotgun start My partner and I were starting
on the hole farthest from the club house. We get on our cart and headed for the
hole. When we got there I got off the cart and reached for my Driver. Surprise
Surprise I had taken the wrong cart. The two gentlemen at the club house were
not very happy.
Avery
Playing a home and home match with another club I told my guest to get on the cart and we would go on out to the hole. We
were supposed to tee off on the West course on the number 6 hole and I knew it was a ways from the club house. We arrived at
the hole and I preceded to tell the guest what a great course we had. We reached the tee off time and the other two players
still hadn't arrived. We waited about ten more minutes and still no show. Suddenly I looked at the hole marker...hole
number 4. As a hung my head in stupidity we headed for the correct hole where I caught a major amount of grief that
continued for the entire round. Talk about embarrassing.
Charlie
In the late 70's I had joined a men's club and was taking lessons. I had a 21 handicap. One day I was playing by myself and
arrived at a par three. My tee shot landed in a sandtrap. I wasn't bothered about that so I proceeded to hit out of the
trap. My first shot was a skull, still in the trap. My second shot same thing. My third shot airmailed the green into
another trap. I was so frustrated I swung my sandwedge in a windmill swing behind me. It ended up in a tree about 10 feet
off the ground. I had wrenched my shoulder in the wild swing and it hurt so bad I could barely move. On the tee behind me,
waiting to tee off were 2 other golfers. When they had composed themselves from laughing at me, they drove down with an
electric cart and stood on the top of it to shake my sand wedge out of the tree. I walked into the clubhouse and couldn't
play for almost two weeks.
Carroll
While playing golf in Wisconsin with my sister and brother-in-law, I hit my drive through the fairway into the edge of a
group of broad leafed and evergreen trees. I had an opening to the green but with a wet, grassy lie. I chose an eight iron
and "splat" went an awful shot. In my frustration I tossed the club no where in particular---and waited. Where in the world
did it go? I looked up and there it was, lodged fifteen feet up in an evergreen tree. I took my ball retriever and began
poking at the eight iron high above me just as my sister and brother in law came up, looking at me with wondering eyes,
unaware of what had happened, when, to their surprise an eight iron fell from the sky at their feet! That
embarrassing moment
, however, did have a positive effect on my behavior in subsequent frustrating situations.
Jerry
I hope this is ok, but this story is about my mother. At the time this happened, she was about a 27 handicap with a horrible
fear of hitting over the water. She was on a par 3 at Walnut Creek Country Club in Oklahoma City, OK. This water hazard
already had a huge collection of her balls from previous visits. Today, she was confident she was going to make it. She
lined up the shot and felt a smooth swing which impacted the ball with perfect precision. The ball soared in the air,
cleared the water but was going to land short of the green, into a family of ducklings and their mother. Sad but extremely
embarrassing, the ball hit one of the ducklings in the neck and broke it on impact. The mother duck kept trying to hold the
poor ducklings head up but it kept falling down. The duck family waddled off including the injured duckling. When my mother
and father arrived on the other side of the water hazard, The ducks were nowhere to be seen. Several other golfers saw this
happen and being a small close Country Club it did not take long for the word to spread. By the time they arrived at the
Clubhouse, there, waiting for my mom's arrival, was a bottle of Cold Duck wine, an expired federal Duck stamp and a summons
from the Department of Wildlife issuing her a ticket for hunting ducks out of season. Needless to say, men have little mercy
for a woman at a golf Country Club. By the way, a chip later and four putts, the par three hole wound up being a six, but
she did not lose that ball.
Jeff
I bounced a 4 iron approach on the cart path of the 18th at Perham CC. When I got near the green I was told it veered hard
right and took a second bounce over a pop machine and thru a tiny window into the pro shop. Naturally when I went in to
retrieve the ball everyone was waiting for me(and staring at the ball which was lying in the middle of the shop.) Red-faced,
but undaunted, I turned to the pro behind the counter and asked him for a ruling on playing the next shot. The gallery loved
it.
Dick
A few years ago I was playing in a scramble. Our foursome had a safe tee shot in the fairway on a par 4, so I decided I
would take a 4-wood over a grove of trees at the dogleg, which should leave us with either a putt for our 2nd shot, or at
worst an easy chip from in front of the green. As I swung the club, I assume I must have looked up prematurely, probably so
I would not miss seeing the magnificent shot I was in the process of hitting.
Apparently this caused me to make contact with the ball somewhere near the toe
of the club. On the tee box, there was a plastic container of sand for repairing
divots. My ball sounded like a shotgun going off when it hit this container. The
lid of the container lifted momentarily, my ball popped into the air, came down
INSIDE the container, at which time the lid came back down. The end result was
that my ball ended up inside the container, which was again closed. Fortunately,
since it was a scramble, I did not have to play it as it lay. ( I prefer to
think of this as a trick shot, rather than the near whiff it really was. At
least we got a good laugh.) I suspect this is nearly as rare a a hole-in-one.
Bill
It was a beautiful Saturday afternoon when our foursome teed off on old No. 1. one of my good friends named John hooked his
tee shot into the trees on the left. My ball was down the fairway on the left hand side. We walked up to our balls and I was
just standing around waiting on him to hit since he was some 20 yards behind me. He his and his ball hit about a 4 inch
branch twenty yards ahead of me and his titleist ball came back and struck me directly in the center of my forehead. The next
morning at church they all commented about the titleist logo ( just a skinned place on my forehead).
Bill I WAS PROBABLY 12 OR 13 YRS OLD AND STILL QUITE EXCITED ABOUT GOLF. PROBABLY SOME OF MY BEST MOMENTS WAS PULLING MY DADS GOLF
CART AROUND AND WATCHING HIM PLAY. HE WAS QUITE A GOLFER IN HIS PRIME, ALMOST A SCRATCH GOLFER. I FINALLY GOT MY CHANCE TO
PLAY IN HIS GROUP SINCE ONE OF THE GUYS CANCELLED LAST MINUTE. I SAID, DAD, WHAT CLUBS AM I GOING TO USE? HE SAID, “WE CAN
SHARE MINE.” I WAS SO EXCITED AND VERY NERVOUS ON THAT FIRST TEE. IT WAS MY TURN TO HIT SO I PULLED OUT MY DADS DRIVER AND
TEED IT UP. I SWUNG AND NOTICED SOMETHING FLYING DOWN THE FAIRWAY. WELL, IT WAS THE HEAD OF MY DADS DRIVER WHICH BROKE OFF
THE SHAFT. I WAS SO EMBARRASSED. WELL WE CONTINUED AND ALL THE GUYS AND MY DAD MADE ME FEEL PRETTY GOOD. WE HAD A GREAT DAY! MY
DAD IS NOW 83YRS OLD AND I AM 53. ITS FUNNY HOW SUCH THINGS LIKE THAT WILL STICK IN YOUR MIND FOREVER.
THAT'S GOLF!!!!
AL
Last year I was playing in our club tournament at Meadowbrook Country Club in Hartley,IA and played the first 18 holes good
enough to get into the Championship Flight to play another 9 holes. I was in the final group to tee off with of course a lot
of people standing and watching. I proceeded to hit my drive directly into a tree off of the left side of the tee box. The
ball came back to the left where it landed on top of a cart shed and rolled back about 50 ft across the roof bounced off the
roof onto the ground and rolled until it stopped about 1 foot from my golf cart, which of course was out of bounds. I picked
it up and started again with everyone wondering if I could do it again. Well I made it over this time and finished the round.
Needless to say I didn't win the tournament.
Tom
I was golfing with my cousin when we were kids. neither of us were good but usually could hit 150 yard. my cousin got up to
the tee and hit a tree about 30 yards in front of tee box and of course bounces back farther than tee box. next shot of
course hits the tree again and bounces back even farther. Finally the third shot gets out in the fairway just past the
womans tee box. As he is walking to the ball his clubs are falling out of his tipped bag and he doesnt notice at first as hes
upset over the shots. He has to go back to pick them up. To top things off 3 cute girls were sitting on a post on the side
of the fairway watching all this and laughing their heads off. My friend has never touched a club since despite living now
near the TPC beautiful course in jacksonville florida.
Garret
I was at our annual company golf outing at Clifton Hollow Golf Course in nearby River Falls, Wisconsin and was teamed up with
a few rookie golfers. One of these rookies was Bruce, who was a college wrestler and rugby player. Bruce was young, strong,
athletic and thought that golf was going to be easy because he had seen how easy the pros had made it look on TV. Our
foursome was picked to be the first to tee off and there was a crowd of about 30 people watching as we hit our drives on the
first hole. I hit first and proceeded to put one right down the middle of the fairway and out about 300 yards. The crowd
around the tee broke into applause and this further made Bruce believe that it was an easy game. He told the crowd, " That
was nice, but just watch this one!" Not wanting to be outdone, Bruce teed up his ball and swung as hard at his ball as his
strong body would let him. He struck the ball with the very back of the heel of his driver. The ball went directly through
his legs and hit the Clifton Hollow sign directly behind him. The ball then bounced off of the sign, whistled over his head,
missing him by inches and flew off into the crowd. You would have thought that it was a scene from a war movie. People hit
the deck as if on command. Thankfully no one got hit by the errant missle and we never did find it's final resting place.
Mike
When I was a teenager I used to play in a league on the weekends. I was only 16 years old, while most of the other players
were elderly. We would tee off at 6:00am. One morning on the sixth hole, which would have been around 6:45am or 7:00am, I
missed a short birdie putt. In frustration, after finally holing out I picked up the ball, tossed it in the air and took a
Major League baseball swing at it with my putter. I didn't really think I would make contact, for I was having trouble
making contact with the ball while it was on the ground that morning. But I did indeed make contact, not just good contact,
but Barry Bonds type contact. The ball flew over the green, over the next hole's tee box, and over an out of bounds fence.
It finally stopped when it hit a house. The contact with the house made such a huge noise. It somehow just missed a sliding
glass door. My playing partners looked at me like I was crazy. The home owner came running out in his pj's. I was so
embarrased that I wanted to bury my head in the sand trap. I apologized to the home owner and my partners. Needless to say
I retired the putter bat and have not hit any more HOME runs!
John
I was in a foursome in OC Maryland. I swung hard on my second shot and skulled the ball. As I looked to the left, I saw two
of my foursome scrambling to get out of a golf cart. The cart was to my left almost parallel to my position. The ball struck
and went through two windshields connected to the cart. It was at that point that I had the state of mind to yell: LOOK OUT!
My group took pictures of the cart and to this day wear protective gear around me.
David
Teeing off the 4th hole of the local course, which by the way runs along highway 37 south, clear way left and the road along
the right, nice stiff west to east wind, I, a golfer who consistently hooks the ball, aim to the left, swing and promptly
quit half way thought the swing. The ball starts very high and slicing slowly drifting toward the ditch, no the highway, at
the same time a Camaro heading south at a high rate of speed, intersect the balls path, the “t” top on the passenger side
erupts in a gray splash of glass, the car swerves violently to and fro coming to a stop adjacent to the tee box. The group on
the tee box watches anxiously waits as the passenger, a shapely young lady climbs from the vehicle, along with her boy
friend who exclaims somebody shot at us!!!! I the perpetrator of the shot climbs down the ditch and up the other side to
greet the shake couple, as I climb the ditch to them I hear her exclaim “I wet my shorts!” I then have to tell them they were
actually hit by a golf ball which I had hit. The insurance paid for the glass and I was ridiculed by the masses of golfers
who found the story amusing. The embarrassing part came when at a school function a fellow teacher was telling other
teachers and friends about this story of a terrible golfer who hit her daughters car and caused her to spoil herself,
needless to say I turned very red when asked “who was It?
17 years have passed and I still get ribbed about that Saturday morning.
Neal
I was playing a new course that was not marked clearly for the next tee box. My wife was with me and I thought the tee box
was a little strange, as you could not see the fairway--you had to tee off over a mound, but I thought that since this was a
small course, it was different. What I did not realize was that I was teeing off in the opposite direction I was supposed to
be going and got on the back nine--fortunately not that many people were on the course--and I thought I was going to show my
wife around as I was the "seasoned" golfer--what an embarrassing situation this was. We wound up playing 19 holes--she has
never let me forget it!!
Justin The day started like any other ordinary round of golf, until the third hole. After finishing up the hole I reached down to retrieve my ball from the cup when I heard a rip. The seam of my pants split wide open. This wasn't so bad, besides the ribbing from my buddies about the need to diet. I figured I would finish the front nine and run in and change and that would be the end of it. WRONG.. I hit the next tee shot into the woods and proceeding to look for it. Just my luck the rip in my pants caught onto a branch and turned the rip into a tear. Now it was hard to conceal my predicament. The fabric was flapping in unison to the flag on the green. And what matters worse is that we were playing in front of four women. The moral of the story is... if you rip your pants... hit it in the fairway! Jeff When I was just learning in college I hit a drive and hooked it badly. The only problem was that the hole was flanked on the left hand side by a four lane road with an island running down the middle. As I got to where I thought my ball hit the fence I realized it had cleared it. Being in college I couldn't afford to lose anything - even if the ball was neon orange and hard as a rock. So I did the right thing. I dropped my bag, scaled the fence, crossed all four lanes of traffic, walked over to the Hardee's drive through line, and - right in front of the pickup window - bent down and grabbed my ball from the dead middle of the drive-thru lane. You should have seen the look on the attendant's face as I showed her the ball I was picking up. I ran back across the street, re-jumped the fence, through the ball into the fairway and continued my round... Now that is being cheap. ;-) Leighton I was invited to a golf outing with a perspective employer. He wanted to have a relaxing day of golf while he interviewed me. It was a warm summer day he was wearing white shorts and a white polo. It was still wet out from a passing rain storm, we were warming up making practice swing my swings going in his general direction when I took an unexpected divot of mud all over his white attire. This was not a great career move on my part. Jim A couple of months back I showed up to a course as a single and was paired up with two gentleman known only to me as John and Bill. John was having a pretty rough day to say the least. I know he must have lost at least a dozen golf balls and was well on his way to his worst score in months. We reached the 14th hole a par 3, 186 yards mostly carry over a lake. I knew it was going to get ugly. John teed up last (he hadn't had honors all day) He proceeded to hit 6 straight balls into the lake. After which he strolled over to the cart unstrapped his golf bag and tossed bag, clubs and all into the lake. I couldn't believe what I was watching. John and Bill got into the cart and headed back to the clubhouse. I waved good-bye and continued on. After reaching the green I saw John and Bill coming back across the the 13th fairway. John pulls up to the lake, gets out, takes off his shoes and socks and proceeds to wade out into the lake. He grabs his bag and drags it to the bank. I stood their in amazement. I was thinking he had a change of heart and decided to retrieve his clubs. John begins searching through the bag compartments. Finally, he turns towards me, holds up his car keys and waves. He then throws his bag and clubs back into the lake. By the time they drove off, I was laughing so hard I couldn't putt. I finally did finish the hole, I three putted, but marked down a par. ( The distraction, had to be worth at least one stroke.) Mike As a beginning golfer I am still learning the rules of the game, how to swing, how to stand and where not to park the golf cart. The last item is where my story begins and ends sadly. I went golfing on a beautiful day with some of my college friends. Most of us have not been playing golf for too long, so we are still working out the kinks. The game starts off pretty slow, but we are gaining more confidence and becoming acclimated to the course by the 5th hole. I hit a pretty decent tee shot (I was happy with it anyway) and went to hit my second shot, mind you I was driving a cart by myself because of odd numbers. The second shot was pretty clear to the green. I drive up to my ball, and being left-handed parked the cart on the left side of my ball about 5 feet away. I ready myself to hit the ball, adjust my feet, make sure my grip is comfortable, etc. In my mind I see the ball soaring through the air onto the green. I swing my club and my ball flies parallel to where I am facing, it nails my cart roof and rattles around for a second before settling in the wire basket on the back of my cart. I immediately hear my friends behind me laughing and commenting on the "great shot". There is a group ahead of us on the next hole teeing off, they look over but don't say anything. So I think there is no way they could have seen that. I of course, am mortified, but the game must go on. The next hole is played without event, but my shot was still the topic of conversation. On the 7th hole, we have to wait to tee off, so we are sitting waiting in our carts, and the group ahead of us walks by. One guy walks past me and says "I just have to ask you one thing, Did it stay in the cart?" Micki Playing golf with a couple of friends during the Fall. The air was full of moisture. It actually had sprinkled on and off throughout the round. On the 18 th hole, where the second shot is over water, I muscled up and hit a 3 iron, only to see the club fluttering in the air and right into the middle of the pond. Bill After an errant drive, my friend dropped me off at the top of a steep embankment. I walked down the hill to try and find my ball. Soon she joined me leaving the cart at the top of the hill. After a short time I heard a whining noise much like a golf cart come down a hill. Sure enough, there was our cart coming down the hill picking up speed with our clubs bouncing around. As the cart passed me, I decided to run after it noticing the bank of trees it was headed for. I couldn't believe my eyes as it missed the trees. However, beyond the trees was a pond and yes, the cart went right into the pond stopping in water up over the wheels. I threw our clubs up on the bank and there we sat and roared with laughter. Soon the ranger came by and we said "we need another cart please" so he had one brought out to us and we were on way. The pro however, did catch up to us and we did get a bit of a talking to about setting the brake. I really enjoy walking while playing golf! Julie |