Put on the all-weather radials

/ May 23, 2014
I'd say this water hazard caught more than a wayward shot. (Photo courtesy of Paul Curran)

I’d say this water hazard caught more than a wayward shot. (Photo courtesy of Paul Curran)

Reader Paul Curran had to pitch in his favorite golf shot to my increasing collection of greenside photographs.

Yes, this is good man Paul and his golfing mates during a round at the Manderley on the Green Golf Club in Ottawa, Canada.

The identity of the rest of his foursome will remain Paul’s to know and tell over and over up there in the taverns of Canada, I am pretty sure.

Paul’s initial email to me said:

“I just wanted to show you a pic of what happened last time I went golfing. Yes, that white roof sticking out of the pond is a golf cart. The various debris on the rough has been retrieved from the cart by brave rescue divers. Ha! And no, I wasn’t driving but one of my group was. Apparently the deadly slope on the rough sucked the unsuspecting cart into the pond when the brakes ‘failed.’ There may have been alcohol involved. No ducks were injured in the making of this photo.”

That, my friends, is an interesting day on the course.

I have driven too fast down hills, or too wide through wooded paths, or too imperiously on other golfers’ fairways as they hit from the tee. What golfer hasn’t?

But into a water hazard?

Well. Not yet. Knock on wood.

Thank you, so much, Paul, for getting this Memorial Day Weekend off to a great start for the golfer in all of us.

My worst driving mishap still stands as an early one in my life, when I pulled my dad Frank’s new brown station wagon too far into our garage, until I collided with my mom Dolores’ brand new standup freezer.

Have you ever driven a wheeled vehicle someplace it wasn’t supposed to go? How did you get said vehicle out of the mess? Did you ever get the urge to swim in a golf course pond or creek?

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41 thoughts on “Put on the all-weather radials”

  2. Oh, wow. As long as no one was injured, that’s pretty funny. Sometimes that happens. ATVs worry me more than anything else. They seem to flip and tip like nothing.

    It’s not that I have tried to drive a vehicle or wheeled apparatus in a place that I wasn’t supposed to, but riding my bike on Cedarvale Rd. led to an unfortunate bike accident that initially worried an exasperated Italian mother, a peeved Irish/Czech father. My uncle used to have golf carts that we would ride in his back yard (he owned a lot of land).

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    • To both exasperate and peeve your parents with one biking incident is a true talent, Chris. Bravo!

      I have never driven an ATV, or I am sure that I would have another mishap for my list, too.

      I have always held this slightly vague feeling that riding a golf cart without playing golf would get me in trouble with the golf gods.

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  3. Bwaaaahaaahaaaaa! How funny! (Probably for everyone except the guy who ended up having to pay to replace the golf cart!) I have not had such misfortune while driving, thankfully. However, recently I took a bride and groom on a trash-the-dress photo session to the mud hole out in the woods and he was supposed to drive through and splash her in her wedding dress with mud. However, he got a little too cocky and his truck got stuck! We had to go drive back out of the woods and send help, and then that guy got stuck! A forest ranger finally saved them. LOL! As for swimming in golf course waters, here that’s a big fat no. We have gators in all ours. 😉 Happy Memorial Day and long weekend! 😀

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      • Yeah, there’s no chance of that. There are gators in the pond behind my house and they come out sometimes, but right now it’s too hot. They usually stay under water when it’s this hot. 🙂

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      • They actually are probably more afraid of you than you are of them, but if you scare them, yes, they will attack. That being said, even though I do know this, does not mean that I don’t run like my bed is on fire whenever I see one!!! The really creepy thing is, they live almost everywhere. I see them at almost every Sams Club and Walmart out in the “retention pond” by their parking lots, and once saw one about 4 feet long crawl under my car in the lot! (ZOINKS!) You can usually see the biggest ones trying to cross the Interstate when it hasn’t rained in a while and they’re looking for water. YIKES!

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  4. What an unfortunate mess. Giggle worthy for all of us not involved.

    I have driven many four wheeled motors astray. Tractors, go-catrs, or even a 67′ Chevy which was my great grandfather’s first brand new truck. My Dad acquired it after G G’pas passing and it was my first driving experience. Three on the tree is hard to learn. Poor me and poor mailbox as I venture into a corn field full of rain water. I swam/stomped to safety. What a mess. Truck just fine. And then became a show pick-up after that… Phew!

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  5. Great pic! I do believe Lance’s minefield off road adventure wins this round. A deadly twist is always hard to top. Unless, are there active mines buried in the rough? That might spice up the game! 😉

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  6. “Have you ever driven a wheeled vehicle someplace it wasn’t supposed to go?”
    Yeah. I think you are familiar with my minefield excursion in the Sinai Desert.
    Once tried to drive my Plymouth station wagon up a forty-five degree incline into my high school’s back yard. (Yes, alcohol was involved).
    Have broken a few other vehicles along the way…

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      • Well, we got the car stuck (Peanut and a couple other buddies were with me); we got out of the car and tried to push it the rest of the way up the incline. And old rancher stopped by and suggested we try pushing it DOWN the incline.
        Worked like a charm.
        Doan know why we did not think of that.
        Hahahha
        High School Drunks! Gotta love ’em!

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  9. Thanks Mark for getting that photo out there. As you said, with the Memorial Day weekend starting, it is an important reminder to all to practice safe driving on the course. Ha! Believe it or not, that was my first golf game ever on the big course after graduating from miniputt. My colleagues talked me into a best ball game one sunny afternoon. I had no idea that golf was such a rough sport that involved demolition derby and diving. The camaraderie was notable and I’d play again but probably in a wetsuit. Happy Holiday!

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