Marysville boy injured by wayward golf ball

By Karl Schweizer

Herald Writer

MARYSVILLE —Forget about the lightning strikes. Golf can clobber you without outside help.

Eleven-year-old Jacob Knodel found that out Monday on hole 5 at Cedarcrest Golf Course. That’s where a fellow golfer hit an errant golf ball right into Jacob’s temple. The impact fractured his skull. The Marysville boy underwent surgery at Providence Everett Medical Center.

Back home now, he wears dozens of stitches and has a nasty bruise on one cheek.

"I never thought it could happen to me," he said.

But it can happen to any golfer, especially as the weather gets hot and golfers get tired, Marysville parks director Jim Ballew said.

The top official for Marysville’s golf course asked all players to watch out for each other as they hit the various greens during this spell of sunny weather.

"I think more than anything, people need to be aware. Particularly when you’re in the heat of the day and you’ve been out playing 18 to 20 holes, you start to lose focus of what your responsibilities are," Ballew said.

"I’ve heard of situations where people consume alcohol and they play 36 holes, and some strange things happen," he said.

It is a golfer’s responsibility to not tee off unless he has a clear shot, Ballew said.

Likewise, golfers shouldn’t go in front of where someone else is teeing off.

Just such an incident happened to another golfer when he grew frustrated with waiting behind some teenagers who were having a hard time controlling the ball, Ballew said.

"He elected to go get a drink of water right in front of their tee shot, and he got it right in the side of the head," Ballew said.

That happened a few years ago at Cedarcrest, but similar accidents have occurred at other area golf courses, he said.

"If you know the people in front of you aren’t having a good game of golf," he said, "I wouldn’t walk in front of them."

You can call Herald Writer Karl Schweizer at 425-339-3452

or send e-mail to schweizer@heraldnet.com.