other peoples' misfortune
This was at the local golf driving range; not just a long strip of land with markers, oh no, this is one of those rather swish high-tech driving ranges - pits and targets, micro-chipped golf balls, automatic scoring system and the like.

I was on the top tier with some mates, all being crap as usual. Amazingly, what follows, almost seemed to happen in slow motion, how I managed to see the whole thing, I guess I was just looking in the right place the right time (or wrong place at the wrong time).

In the tier below, someone was trying to chip his or her ball into the target nearest. Each target is a big segmented pit, and in the centre of each, is a small metal tube - essentially the hole. Whoever it was managed to hit this tube, with some force.

I saw the ball ricochet up, my sight followed it all the way up to the bay next to us, where upon it hit a fat little 9 year old square in his t-shirted chest. Needless to say he fell flat on his back, having had the wind knocked out of him, and he proceeded to cry his little eyes out.

Now I could have rushed over to help his parents and friends pick him up, or I could have called for assistance. No. All I did was burst into fits of hysterics. I was in tears. This had the unfortunate effect in setting of my mates who all started laughing.

That poor little fat kid - not only had a stray golfball nearly killed him, but the bay of twenty-somethings next to him were revelling in his pain.

I know I'm going to get a good pitchforking at the big barbeque at the end of time for that one....
( theoriginalsteve <this space intentionally left blank>, Tue 16 Dec 2008, 8:54, 2 replies)

Oh, crap
This reminds me of a similar kind of tale.
When I was 9 or so, I went to a golfing range somewhere between Sidcup and Chislehurst with my dad. We're up on the top tier, also. I am 9, and therefore crap at driving. I hit the ball, it rolled off the tee and down onto the tier below.

*thud*
"Ow!"

Of course, I thought this was the funniest thing in the entire world. I kept trying to roll the balls over and hit the poor faceless golfers below.
( Grokthought wouldn't pay that for Chinese 5-Spice, Tue 16 Dec 2008, 10:08, closed)

^ haha
Now that's the funniest thing I've read so far today ><
(harrumph, Tue 16 Dec 2008, 17:09, closed)