Etiquette note: If someone accidentally hits too close, give them a chance to apologize.

[newtogolf]

Not sure if you're replying to my post or in general, but in my case it was 2 different groups.  We let one group play through at the turn while we grabbed some lunch.

Originally Posted by dieRx

If the group behind has hit into my group a few times, sometimes I'll just tee the ball up. They would know they were hitting into us and they have an extra reason to catch up and apologize because I want my tee back. :p

[x129]

Unless you are being negligent, hitting someone isn't a liable event. Running away probably adds to your legal liability.  Given the course has your name and you left evidence with your finger prints at the crime scene, it is going to be pretty easy to track you down.

Originally Posted by ejimsmith

i think you inherit a risk at a golf course of getting hit by a ball.  so yeah, no joke, if i hit you with my ball, i hope you brought a friend to call 911 cause i'm outta there!

[Mr3Wiggle]

Originally Posted by x129

Unless you are being negligent, hitting someone isn't a liable event. Running away probably adds to your legal liability.  Given the course has your name and you left evidence with your finger prints at the crime scene, it is going to be pretty easy to track you down.

I think it depends on which state you are in, but generally this is correct.  I might also add that negligent or not, the golfer has a duty of reasonable care to avoid injuries to others.  i.e. - YELL FORE!  Also, a poorly struck shot, in and of itself, does not give rise to liability without affirmative evidence that the player failed to exercise due care.

[zeg]

Yeah, beyond the inherent douchebaggery of the act, running off is only going to make things worse. It's going to be hard to explain to the court why you didn't make an effort to assist someone in an injury that, legally liable or not, you caused.

[lostmyballs]

Originally Posted by sean_miller     Not everyone is programmed to yell "fore" at the top of their lungs when a ball goes awry.

This is a horrible excuse for not warning someone if a ball is hit at them. So you might look dumb yelling when the ball lands far away from the guy. So what? You hit someone in the back of the head and they could be blind for life, all because you are "not programmed" to warn someone of an impending threat that you created?

[bplewis24]

Originally Posted by lostmyballs

This is a horrible excuse for not warning someone if a ball is hit at them. So you might look dumb yelling when the ball lands far away from the guy. So what? You hit someone in the back of the head and they could be blind for life, all because you are "not programmed" to warn someone of an impending threat that you created?

You'd be surprised at how many people are a bit meek or timid when it comes to shouting/yelling.

Brandon

[lostmyballs]

I don't get angry at much in this world, but if I or a loved one or friend ever got hit by someone who's only excuse for not warning us was that they were just too shy, I would flip out. It's as if their tiniest inconvenience is too much of a hassle to prevent what could be a life-altering consequences. Talk about absolutely selfish on their part. It makes me disgusted.

Don't get me wrong. I hit many wayward drives. But if there is even the slighest chance that those balls are heading towards other golfers I will yell fore so loud you'll hear me from the bathroom in the clubhouse. Imagine knowing you are the reason someone has to go to the hospital because you were too inconsiderate to shout?

[sean_miller]

Originally Posted by lostmyballs

Quote:

Originally Posted by sean_miller     Not everyone is programmed to yell "fore" at the top of their lungs when a ball goes awry.

This is a horrible excuse for not warning someone if a ball is hit at them. So you might look dumb yelling when the ball lands far away from the guy. So what? You hit someone in the back of the head and they could be blind for life, all because you are "not programmed" to warn someone of an impending threat that you created?

If I don't have spotters I'll yell it every time and when I have had spotters I've had an expectaion they'll provide some feedback. Otherwise they should get their a**es off the teebox and not pretend to be a spotter, but that is a topic for another discussion.

I've played a lot of golf over the years and whenever I play a course where hackers frequent I see the same thing. Enough people there yell fore every time they hit a drive even slightly off line, that now for the most part their "courtesy yell" is like the boy who cried wolf. I don't disagree with warning people, but get off your high horse and save the internet tough guy routine for someone who's never been on a golf course.

Step 1. Guy yells fore.

Step 2. Clueless person in adjacent fairway stops walking - if they hear it - and raises head to look toward the sound. "Who said that - where'd that come from?"

Step 3. The ball that was either going to hit or miss them will still either hit or miss them because they didn't do anything to protect their coconut but no both parties feel better, except for the person who was hit who might not have been hit if he'd dropped to the ground instead of gawking around to see where the ball was coming from.

[zeg]

Originally Posted by sean_miller

I've played a lot of golf over the years and whenever I play a course where hackers frequent I see the same thing. Enough people there yell fore every time they hit a drive even slightly off line, that now for the most part their "courtesy yell" is like the boy who cried wolf.

This is a big part of the problem. How close is close enough that you should yell?

Another wrinkle is how long you wait before yelling. Particularly on sliced or hooked balls, it's not always obvious how far offline the ball is going to end up until fairly late in the ballflight. This can get into the "meerkat" problem that you mentioned. It doesn't do much good to shout something too late for someone to react.

[Mr3Wiggle]

Originally Posted by zeg

This is a big part of the problem. How close is close enough that you should yell?

Another wrinkle is how long you wait before yelling. Particularly on sliced or hooked balls, it's not always obvious how far offline the ball is going to end up until fairly late in the ballflight. This can get into the "meerkat" problem that you mentioned. It doesn't do much good to shout something too late for someone to react.

If your ball is headed in someone's general direction and they are within range of your best shot, you should yell fore.

[moparman426]

Originally Posted by ejimsmith

i think you inherit a risk at a golf course of getting hit by a ball.  so yeah, no joke, if i hit you with my ball, i hope you brought a friend to call 911 cause i'm outta there!

There is also an inherent responsibility to protect your fellow golfers, and you are negligent if you think otherwise.  I hope you are joking....  If not, you are part of the reason why society is in the state it's in right now.  I think people are confusing taking responsibility for their actions with the perception of anonymity our electronic world provides.   I might be an ass, but I'd rather be an ass than a douchebag.

[zeg]

Originally Posted by Mr3Wiggle

If your ball is headed in someone's general direction and they are within range of your best shot, you should yell fore.

This is easily said, but it's often difficult to gauge.

[phillyk]

I have definitely had my share of hitting into people.  'lil background: I feel I know my swing well enough that when I'm hitting a bad shot, by the time i hit the ball, I'm yelling "no!" too bad I can't stop myself like Tiger...

So, when I play shorter courses or courses with a couple short par 4's where I'm more than capable of hitting the green, I'll tee off last.  But as these courses are usually busy, I don't like to wait more than that because people behind me start getting pissed, because they don't think I'll reach, and I hate those conversations.  So, as I'm swinging or by the time I hit the ball, I usually know whether I hit it good enough to reach the green, and I SCREAM fore!  Even though, I'm sure they heard me, I'll go apologize because that is the right thing to do.

The times I don't yell fore are when I'm on a hole with a dogleg that I shape the ball very well, without knowing where the people in front of me are, or I had no clue how the ball did what it did.  These occasions I always feel like crap about, and run up to people to apologize and see if the ball came close to them.  I've never run into a situation where the people were pissed that I hit into them, which I'm thankful for, because as already stated, I don't like uncomfortable confrontations.

[Jmdmbike]

Yeah, beyond the inherent douchebaggery of the act, running off is only going to make things worse. It's going to be hard to explain to the court why you didn't make an effort to assist someone in an injury that, legally liable or not, you caused.

+1. if you actually hit someone and ran from the scene, you're not a golfer, you're a thug. Plain and simple. The "inherent douchebaggery of the act" may not something you'd hear in a Court room, but I think it's a pretty good description of the circumstances.

[Mr3Wiggle]

Originally Posted by zeg

This is easily said, but it's often difficult to gauge.

How so?  If there is a tee box 40 yards to the right of a green and I spray one way right, I yell fore.  It's not like you get penalized for shouting fore and not hitting it close to them.  When in doubt, yell fore.

[Clambake]

Originally Posted by zeg

This is easily said, but it's often difficult to gauge.

You're half right - it is easily said.   The word "fore" only has one syllable and doesn't take long to say, and takes very little physical effort to quickly shout.    It is very easily said, so why feel one has to gauge whether or not there is going to be an imminent danger?    Just yell, and if you misgauge it then no harm, no foul.

[bplewis24]

So then do you guys care to speculate on why it doesn't happen more often (cautiously yelling fore when in doubt)?  I don't think all (most?) people that don't do it are simply insensitive a-holes.

Brandon

[sean_miller]

Originally Posted by Clambake

Quote:

Originally Posted by zeg

This is easily said, but it's often difficult to gauge.

You're half right - it is easily said.   The word "fore" only has one syllable and doesn't take long to say, and takes very little physical effort to quickly shout.    It is very easily said, so why feel one has to gauge whether or not there is going to be an imminent danger?    Just yell, and if you misgauge it then no harm, no foul.

270 out and laying up with a 4-iron  . . . FORE

Hitting an iron off the tee to a fairway someone tells you is clear  . . . yell FORE in case he's lying  - don't wait, just hit and yell FORE.

Some times you're not aware there was somebody there or that your ball was going even remotely near anyone until it's too late. But go ahead and paint every situation with the same brush guys.