Have you ever been struck by a golf ball? I’ve come close to being hit on a few different occasions. One time, years ago, my father sliced one so bad he sent me and my uncle scurrying from the bench that was parallel to the tee-box!

Another time, I had a ball bounce into my cart after striking the path directly in front of me. It ricocheted inside the cart a few times, then shot-out the back and into the fairway – it was pretty unnerving. And of course, there have been other balls that landed “too-close-for-comfort,” but fortunately, nothing serious.

So, have you ever hit someone with a golf ball? I have. I had just teed-off on the sixth-hole of a local mortar range when I noticed my ball was heading directly toward a person who was walking directly toward me from the adjacent fairway. I let out a blood-curdling “FORE!!!!” Everyone on the course hit-the-deck (including everyone in my group). Everyone, that was, save for the one person my “FORE!!!!” was intended towards.

Needless-to-say, my ball careened off this guy’s enormous gut, bounced through the rough and rolled back into my fairway. I mean, he left me an awesome approach – seriously, it was probably my best lie of the day. Anyway, the guy didn’t go down…he just kept walking! So I sheepishly approached him as he lumbered closer to me. “Sorry,” I said. “but I yelled fore…Are you OK?” “That’s alright,” he replied. “I’m hard of hearing!” WTF?

I’m sure most veteran golfers have a few good stories. But looking back on it, I got lucky. I mean, I could have been sued! It happens all the time – so much so, a recent article suggested it’s a good idea for all golfers to get golf insurance: “For a small cost, golfers can insure themselves against injuring another player during a round, having their golf equipment stolen, damaging property with a poorly hit shot, and even insured against having to pay for a round of drinks, the traditional ‘reward’ for achieving a hole in one.” Hahaha – drinks for a hole-in-one! There’s something I’ll probably never put a claim in for!

But seriously, do we really need golf insurance? I’ve been playing over 20 years and never even considered it…and I’ve hit a guy! Well, I guess the answer is, it depends on where you live. In the UK, courts mostly rule that golfers are liable for shots that cause injury, no matter how slight the risk and regardless of whether you yell fore. Thus there are a number of different golf insurance companies in the UK offering competitive prices ($2-$3 a day) and multiple coverage options. In the US however, court decisions are pretty much the opposite.

Court cases in the United States typically side with the defendant, claiming one takes an “assumed risk” while on the course. This stems from the prevailing thought in American law that for sports, there can be no fault from negligence-related injuries or those resulting from conduct that is considered part of the game. Basically, unless a golfer acts recklessly, it’s tough for a plaintiff to win their case – even if no one yells fore!

This is not to say you no longer have to yell fore here in the States. Please, please, please CONTINUE to yell fore! And if the person is hearing impaired, pray he has a nice, big gut to cushion the blow…