[Nesskissabe]

Years ago my in-laws invited me to play at their club. I jumped at the chance since THEIR club was one of the finest around. It came down to numer 18 where I had a 4 iron left on a par 4. My in-laws didn't play with our group which was composed mainly of my brother in laws and myself. My in-laws were sitting on a patio overlooking the 18th eating lunch. Well I pushed my 4 iron, which, in turn, hit a cart path, which in turn bounced onto the patio and right into the lunch crowd. I can't tell you how proud my in-laws were.

So the question is: What is the most embarassing or compromising situation that you've ever found yourself in after bouncing a shot off cartpaths, concrete, roofs, or any other hard surface on the course?

[77rexulceme]

I did a similar thing at Plainfield CC last year. I hit my gap wedge way further than I thought I could on 18 and right into the patio area where people were hanging and watching us play. I jokingly said "I guess this will be my last invite." when I got up to them.

[Audi_z]

My daughter's boy friend (before he became my son in law) hit a cart path. The ball bounced up, hit a tree limb, and ricochet into a big 8X12 plate glass window, cracking it. How a golf ball could crack a window that thick is unfortunate. Anyways my boy took it upon himself to go up to the owners back yard and plead his accidental deed. I knew he could not afford to buy a new window of this size, so with out his knowledge, I was backing his play with my check book. As it turned out the owner told him that because of his honesty, to not worry about the cost of replacement. That was also about the time I figured my daughter had picked decent human being to father my grand children.

We have a few golf course communities where someones back porch is very close to the edge of the green. I am talking sometimes only about 10-15 feet. When I find myself hitting to one of those, I will purposely lay up to avoid any issues. At my home course, there are houses that look like they have been involved in a drive by shooting due to the number of golf balls that have hit the "stucco'd homes. In addition to holes in the stucco finish, several also have broken windows. Homes that are 210-250 from the tee box are literally peppered due to hooks, and misaligned draws. I have landed a few ball in peoples back yards, and it is not a pleasant feeling. Luckily I have never caused any damage to feel responsible for. (knock on wood)

[esconsise]

So far I have been lucky to not have any embarrassing moments of hitting cars, houses etc. (although I did come close to hitting the president of my company one time). My son-in-law was visiting few years ago and we decided to play a late afternoon round at my home course. The first hole parallels a busy street and there are no nets alone the road so he tees up and hits a nice hook to the right just as a car is approaching there is a loud thud as the ball hits the windshield of the car.

It was interesting to find out that the course claimed to have no liability in the resulting golf ball-car windshield meeting. My son-in-law and the owner of the car were told that my son-in-law would need to file a claim on his home owners insurance. At the time he lived in New Mexico and did contact his insurance carrier but he nor the insurance company every heard from the car owner, the insurance company was going to pay for a new windshield.

[xgnuwdd]

My balls always seem to ricochet off of trees and find their way onto the fairway....sometimes my wife and I come up on my ball (which i thought was lost) and it's in the middle of the fairway! AMAZING!

[asharbiq]

I hit a three wood off the deck into a cart from my group that had ventured ahead about 100 yards in the right rough. I hit the steering wheel, missing the driver by inches. It bounced back into the fairway.

I had recently restarted playing the game after at least 10 years off, and I was very embarrassed at the time. In retrospect, they shouldn't have driven so far ahead.

[hieklyintinee]

I have actually hit a car on I-55. The 4th hole at my home course borders the interstate and I hit a wicked slice. Everyone in my group bought me a beer for that one.

[Auzuigcx]

I was visiting Arizona and was playing at Tatum Ranch Golf Club. i hit a drive that hooked something fierce. As I walked down the left side of the fairway to find my ball I noticed that one of the homes ran a day care out of it. The kids happened to be outside at the time. The owners of the day care did however install a net completely covering and surrounding the backyard. My ball sat right on top of that net right over the head of a little kid playing with his Tonka truck. I felt pretty small walking up to apologize. I did not however ask for my ball back.

[anconueys]

A couple of years ago, right after my brother moved into his house in the golf community I went out to play the 9 hole par 3 with him.

I hadn't played in nearly a year, so the first swing, I made a mighty one, it was a 180yd par 3, and I hit my 19° hybrid. Well, I caught it off the toe, it went about 45° right of my intended target, caught a bounce off the edge of the road, and went zooming toward a neighbor's house. The ball bounced off his truck with a resounding thwack. To make things better, the owner of said truck was sitting on the front porch, drinking a beer and watching us. I go running over, pulling out my wallet, sure I'm going to have to pay for dent repair as the owner's already at the truck. "Well hell, it wasn't even hard enough to dent it!" was all he had to say with a big grin, loudly enough for everyone else on the course to hear... I had to make the march of shame back to the tee box (but he did give me my ball back) to grab my clubs and proceed to the next hole.

On the 5th hole of that same round, I managed to bounce a ball off of a turtle in a pond to get the ball onto the green.

It was quite a day.

[Yinekol]

On the 5th hole of that same round, I managed to bounce a ball off of a turtle in a pond to get the ball onto the green.

It was quite a day.

I saw MO bounce a ball off a fish once! Lucky bastage.

Well, his buddy said it was a fish. Might have been a turtle. It was something living.

[WenPyclenoWex]

Playing Glenwood CC in Glenwood AR, I arrived in 9 fairway looking down at the green which was nestled adjacent to the practice green and with the clubhouse behind the practice green. This area was all concrete and the clubhouse had a concrete balcony that extended the full length of the building.

At this moment, there was a tournament preparing to start and the area was covered in golfers putting their clubs on their carts and practice putting. Some just milling around on the balcony. I was about 130 out with the hole playing downhill. I pulled a 9 iron and hit away. My ball flew toward the green, then over the green onto the concrete pad. The ball then caroomed down the length of the clubhouse alternately hitting the concrete apron and the underside of the concrete balcony. Golfers scattered everywhere running from this raging missile. Once the ball had passed out the other end of this congregation, every eye in the area turned almost in unison to me standing in the middle of the fairway looking forlornly at my 6 iron that I had pulled by mistake.

There was no where to hide, no way to run, I had to look at them, shrug my shoulders and point impotently at my club in a vain attempt to explain that I was NOT a complete idiot, just a poor hapless soul that had accidently hit way too much club and put them all in harm's way. My pantomine did not work well although I did get a smattering of applause and quite a bit of laughter as I made my way sheepishly past them towards 10. I did not finish the hole and could barely finish the round I was so abjectly ashamed of my faux pas.

It is finally funny now.