Errant golf balls
 

Two questions on errant golf balls. One, what is a golfers financial responsibility if he/she damages a house with an out of bounds shot? I always thought if a house is built along a fairway of a pre-existing course or one that is known to be built, it is their responsibility to pay for the damages. They knew when they purchased the house there was the possibility of damage by an errant shot.

Two, what is the proper way to look for/recover a ball hit into a yard on a course? I've seen houses with private property/no trespassing signs to discourage people from walking in the yard to retrieve a ball. Like above, if they live by a fairway they should expect the situation. Unless I'm mistaken, I doubt if a person would have a ball land in their yard that often to warrant any lawn damage while the golfer is retrieving the ball. Actually I feel like I'm picking up trash I put in his yard.

Please never play a ball from the yard of a resident. It is also appropriate to report any damage of private property to the homeowner. We ask that you never retrieve your ball from a resident’s property.

Copied from Golf the Villages

The golfer has ZERO responsibility financial or otherwise. If you recover a ball, you are trespassing. Most homeowners have no problem with that. There are; however, some that use the opportunity to act like a raving idiot. I leave the ball simply to avoid any conflict. Your call.

This will soon turn into an ethics argument

Not if posters stick to the question by not adding personal opinions rather than facts.

[QUOTE=TheVillageChicken;788364]
Please never play a ball from the yard of a resident. It is also appropriate to report any damage of private property to the homeowner. We ask that you never retrieve your ball from a resident’s property.

Copied from Golf the Villages[/QUOTE]

If we are relying on facts and not personal opinion, wouldn't "Golf the Villages" have the facts?

Can I interest you in some ocean front property in Arizona?

Good topic! I live on a golf course here and wish that ALL the golfers would obey the rules and respect the fact that the private property of the homeowner is not part of the golf course. While MOST golfers are courteous and follow the rules, we do have those which have......walked around the property looking for their golf ball, played their ball from our lawn, rode their golf cart across our lawn, thrown their cigarette butts onto our property. The worst offenders are those who walk off the course to our lanai screen to take pictures, critique decorating and furniture, touch the shrubs to see if they are real and those who shout hello repeatedly in through the screen to their friends because they think they live here. (Happens more then you think!)

We love living on the golf course and have learned quite a bit about the game and technique from the golfers. They have become our entertainment and many are new friends. We chat with them as we dine on the lanai or garden.
We both are golfers and respect the privacy of others, leaving our balls when they are off course. For the homeowners who live on the golf course, we hope that you use our wayward balls when you play. My balls are the pink Noodles and hubby's are the neon yellows.

From So. Florida Sun Sentinel Newspaper

Who pays for golf ball damage to a condo? - Sun SentinelWho pays for golf ball damage to a condo? - Sun Sentinel

"Legal experts say being in the line of fire comes with the territory when you buy into a condo or homeowners community that borders a golf course.

"The golf courses were not built overnight," said Donna Berger, of Katzman, Garfinkel and Berger, one of the largest community association law firms in the state. "I live on a golf course, too, and have had to deal with damages. But as the law sees it, owners assume the risk when they move in." She said it is similar when home buyers purchase a home near an airport. It is difficult for them to file a lawsuit based on airplane noise.

She said Florida and other states have routinely upheld that principle, adding that an owner may have grounds for a lawsuit when the golfing-related damage rises to the level of a general nuisance, such as a home or unit being struck on a regular basis."

On courses along a busy road, if someone hooks or slices a drive and it hits a car, is the golfer or the car owner liable? I would think the golfer, but I'm not familiar with the laws. I actually saw this happen first hand last week. A terrible hook on par three from one of the folks we were paired with that went though some trees, we saw it bounce on 466 at the intersection of BV, lucky for him it didn't hit a stopped or moving car.

It's always the golfers responsibility for his or her own ball and any damage it may cause. That's golf etiquette 101

:popcorn::popcorn::popcorn:
Here we go again!

Perhaps morally, but most definitely not legally in this state.

Not true. It may be etiquette, but the golfer has zero legal responsibility. Please don't make up answers to serious questions. It can distort the true facts.

Make up answers? Read it again. Who else could be held accountable for a golfers lack of ability to keep his or her ball on the golf course. If you hit it off the map and damage a home and choose to walk away, that's on you.