Alligator bites off part of man’s arm on golf course

Alligator bites off part of man’s arm on golf course

12 October 2009 2,998 views 8 Comments

Let's file this one under, "Sometimes ya just gotta let that ball go"...Remember Chubbs Peterson?

By Associated Press

Posted: October 9, 2009

BEAUFORT, S.C. – Officials say an alligator bit off part of a golfer's arm as he leaned over to pick up his ball at a private South Carolina course.

The man, who is in his 70s, was retrieving his ball from a pond when the 10-foot alligator bit him at Ocean Creek Golf Course in Beaufort County. The gator pulled the golfer into the pond and ripped off his arm in the struggle. His golf partners were able to free him.

Wildlife workers killed the alligator and retrieved the arm in the hopes it might be reattached.

The man has not been identified. He was being treated at the Medical University of South Carolina, but officials there would not release any information about him.

A call to the golf course was not immediately returned.

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8 Comments »

Sets Golf said:

Couldn’t this guy see the alligator before he started to look for his ball? I guess not. That’s too bad. I hope that the doctors will be able to reattach his arm and that he will be ok.

# 13 October 2009 at 2:06 pm

Michael said:

Being in Hilton Head, this story hits home. Unfortunately, the only sign that gets ignored more that “Please keep up the Pace of Play” and “Carts on Path this hole” is “Please DO NOT feed the alligators”. What happens is they get used to interactions with the top of the food chain (that would be us)and the next thing you know is you’ve got a great pair of shoes and a belt eating your arm. Lesson learned – hopefully. As a friend of mine, who worked for a major golf ball manufacturer, used to say when he rinsed one and I wandered over to the water’s edge to look, “Don’t worry about it, we’ll make more”.

But don’t let this story of the South Carolina Lowcountry scare you – the golf is good year round – come gve us a vsiit.

# 15 October 2009 at 10:50 am

Christian (author) said:

I’ve only seen an alligator once on the golf course, and it was in Myrtle Beach. It was probably 3-4 feet in length and was sunning itself on the bank of a small pond. Not really a threat, but I sure wasn’t going to go down and mess with the sucker.

# 15 October 2009 at 10:54 am