Keep Your Composure On The Course (Or Bad Things Might Happen)

Even if you always keep your composure on the course & can stay cooler than a bottle straight off the beer cart, I’m sure you’ve had a laugh or two at the legend of the poor golfer who chucked his cart bag into a creek only to realize his car keys were still in it. And I know at least a few of my Rock Heads get mad – I mean, REALLY MAD – when you miss a shot. But besides blowing away any concentration you may have had and maybe ruining the round for your partners, I’m gonna give you one more great reason to restrain yourself the next time you’re about to fling your 5-iron: it could kill you!

According to urban legend site Snopes.com, 16 yr old Jeremy Brenno of Gloversville, NY, was killed when the shaft on his 3 wood broke after slamming in against a bench during a round. A piece bounced back and pierced his heart back in 1994. And no flubbed shot or bad ball is worth that.

Unfortunately Brenno wasn’t the only one to suffer accidental death by a golf club. In 1951, Edward Harrison was playing at Inglewood in Kenmore Washington, when his driver broke and the shaft stabbed him in the groin. The loss of blood was too much and Harrison died on the course.

In 2005, two teens suffered the same fate as both 15-year-old Rafael Naranjo and 12-year-old Chandler Hugh Jackson were killed by broken shafts. Naranjo swung his club at and stuck a fire hydrant, while Jackson simply slipped and fell on a broken club during his round.

What’s your favorite way to vent your frustrations on the course? This Caveman will cop to copious swearing and some gritted teeth, but any more than that seems to do more harm than good. Better to move on and start thinking about your next shot, if you ask me!

~Scratch

Thanks again to Snopes.com for the detective work!