If I were to live on a golf course, I'd expect that from time-to-time, my house would be hit by an errant ball and even a window might be broken.

I would also expect that I might hear golfers shouting "Nice shot!" or saying things like "Darn it, I shanked it."

I'd expect to hear lawnmowers at dawn, huge sprinklers going on at all hours, those machines that roll the greens, etc., etc., etc.

All of the above are part and parcel of living on a golf course. And no, I would neither ask nor expect a golfer who hit the ball that broke my window to pay for the broken window.

Last summer, btw, I played at Mallory? and one of the houses had a sign that said "Please feel free to retrieve your ball." Nice attitude, that.

I live on a golf course and have found that guys like your golfing buddy are playing from the wrong tees. They should move as far forward as possible.

What is perplexing to me is the attitude some have concerning the penalities befalling residents who have chosen to buy a home on a golf course.

By demeanor and tenor what I hear some say is you deserve what you get. It is like saying to a woman you got raped because of what you wore. what did you expect.

People buy on a golf course for myraid reasons. And while they are aware of the potential for an errant ball it doesn't mean that they deserve the ridicule, bad behavior, tresspassing , foul language, golf carts driving on your property or someone who hits a ball from your yard, which by by the way means they don't even understand the rules of the game.

If player feels no obligation to pay for damages then I trust that player also understands the phrase "my yard my Pro VI."

If the best in he world can hit an errant ball then it is understandable someone playing in TV will hit an errant ball. it has nothing to do with skill or whether a player is playing from the wrong tees, Playing from the wrong tees is in part an attempt by golf admin to get people to play faster now that TV is overcrowded. But it isn't the wrong tees that are the problem its the socialization and lack of playing ready golf creating the backlog.

The Golf Admin has the starters give players all the rules yet I have never had one of them explain that it is considered tresspass to retrieve a ball from someone's yard. Why?

Once again there is no legal obligation by a golfer to pay for damage, unless there is a court case that contradict state law and or a rule offered by the golf course to accept such liability.

Hit them well and enjoy

Thanks...
 

...to all the ethical people who left a note on my windshield over the last 44 years I have owned automobiles when they dinged my bumper or the side of my car and offered to pay for the repairs. Every car have ever owned has been bumped and or dinged and no one EVER left a note or offered to pay for damages.

It appears to me that people have "ethics" when they are in a foursome and their friends are watching, but not when they are alone in their automobiles.

I'm just sayin'...

Well, we have all got one, opinion that is. So like with politics and religion, since we will never agree, we must rely on the law or rule of HOA. My etiquette will never be the same as the next guy.

OH, heres my opinion:

I would try to contact the owner and explain/apologize after my round of golf. No slow play remember. If he/she was polite, I would attempt to come to an arrangement that would satisfy both of us. If the owner became irate, I would simply walk away without one more word leaving the owner to HIS PROBLEM.

I beg to differ: I would not compare the slice from a golfer with the criminal act of Rape? Let me suggest that when you exaggerate this much, you loose the point entirely. If my home gets hit by a hurricane, I will accept what I got, because I knew going in that it is very possible in Florida, and I will not scream at the governor for damage to my house, I will contact the insurance company and tell them I got what I knew could happen and ask for assistance in fixing my property back to condition before the Strom. The only difference between: THEY GOT WHAT THEY DESERVE or I AM SO SORRY I HIT THAT HOUSE is each individuals interpretation, that all.

What difference is there between the golfing accident and a dented car in a parking lot? When you accidently dent someone's car in a parking lot, you are legally responsible for leaving a note. If you do not, that is a legal issue and you can be fined.

Also, if I were playing golf with my group and one of the players hit a window, broke it, and started to ignore it, I definitely would tell him to go to the house and leave his information. If he did not, I would get out of the cart and go inform the homeowner of the golfer's name and address. May lose a golfing buddy but I do not need them without personal ethics.

Big difference between legal responsibility and personal ethics. You can always offer to pay for some damage you did. But being required to pay is different than feeling like you should. The law does differentiate between some acts of responsibility. It seems like living on the side of golf course is one of those times.