So you think that you’re the world’s worst golfer? With all due respect, your swing — crappy as it may be — has never set off a raging inferno like the one to the right. The golfer who did this has asked that his name be withheld, and with good reason. He’d never hear the end of it (“You’re really on fire today, Larry!”) But we do know these facts: It happened at the Shady Canyon Golf Course in Irvine on Saturday, when the guy hit a ball into the rough. On his second swing, he hit a rock, causing a spark that lit the dry grass. Eventually, 150 firefighters were called to the scene.
Another photo following the jump.
From the Los Angeles Times:
The fire spread across two hillsides in dry-as-tinderbox conditions.
“Usually, we’re able to close out the fire season in the winters here,” Orange County Fire Authority Capt. Greg McKeown said, “but we haven’t been able to do that since 2006. That’s just how dry it is out there.”
Do you know how hard it is to start a fire without matches? And this guy does it with two swings of a golf club, and then can’t put it out? I say alcohol was involved.
***
Golfer sparked Irvine brush fire trying to hit ball, officials say; 150 firefighters respond [Los Angeles Times]
Golfer shoots out of rough, starts fire [Wildfire Today]
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- dembones123 - Aug 31, 2010 at 10:38 PM
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Obama’s fault.
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- Steve - Sep 1, 2010 at 12:10 AM
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Cigarettes get blamed for alot more fires than they start. They seem to get blamed for everything from diaper rash to asteroids being on a collision course with earth nowdays. But take my word for it, sparks can light fine dry grass. And before you doubt my word I might add that I’ve been a firefighter for 27 years.
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- C-Wick - Sep 1, 2010 at 9:41 AM
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Can I get a ruling on this.. ahh.. fire?
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- C-Wick - Sep 1, 2010 at 9:44 AM
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Larry, you want me to pull the pin? Or you just gonna burn it down?
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- C-Wick - Sep 1, 2010 at 9:47 AM
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Mind if we play through? Larry started a fire on the last hole, and now we’re kinda in a rush.
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- Jimmy The Goon - Sep 1, 2010 at 10:13 AM
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It was George Bush that started this and he has finally found the Iraqui WMD’s.
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- Matt - Sep 1, 2010 at 10:25 AM
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wife: how is your golf game going honey ?
man: uhhhhhhhhhm, i’m on fire today, i’m going to be a bit late for dinner.
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- Daywalker - Sep 1, 2010 at 11:47 AM
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Its always a smoker isn’t it? Or perhaps a smoking HUNTER that always burns down a forest. It could never be a stupid camper or hiker right?
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- Sarah - Sep 1, 2010 at 12:28 PM
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Great Balls of Fire!!!!!
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- ?caddy? - Sep 1, 2010 at 12:37 PM
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“I want you to kill every last gopher on this course.” ” But sir, if I kill all the golfers won’t we go out of business.” “NOT THE GOLFERS!” “THE GOPHERS!”
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- JimmyY - Sep 1, 2010 at 1:36 PM
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Impossible to do unless he hit a cigarette lighter with his club. Mythbusters did it years ago. Guy’s full of it, so is anyone who believes the BS story.
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- Fireman452 - Sep 1, 2010 at 2:04 PM
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in 1994 the state of Montana (governor) shut down back country hunting for fear that the shoes from the horses used to transport hunters could spark a wildfire. The RH required to ignite a grass fire from a cigarette is about 18% – not very likely in our area (FLORIDA) but entirely possible in California – guess we could go either way on this one but the cigarette is a more likely scenario than the club and a rock.
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- BanjoJack - Sep 1, 2010 at 3:51 PM
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I play at Langley AFB course most of the time. They recently rebuilt the course after
removing old buried military ordinance. Can you imagine a fire on the old course
before they removed the ordinance? Holy forth of July !!!
I think I’ll be checking around after my swing, just in case.
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- BanjoJack - Sep 1, 2010 at 3:54 PM
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I play at Langley AFB course most of the time. They recently rebuilt the course after
removing old buried military ordinance. Can you imagine a fire on the old course
before they removed the ordinance? Holy forth of July !!!
I think I’ll be checking around after my swing, just in case.
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- Steve - Sep 1, 2010 at 6:43 PM
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Mythbusters attempted to make a shock absorber explode and failed. Yet it was done at a national fire school and I’ve seen it happen myself during vehicle fires. Matter of fact I saved 2 different kinds of shock absorbers for training purposes that exploded and split wide open. Just because Mythbusters couldn’t make something happen doesn’t mean it’s impossible and they have admitted that themselves. Fine dry organic materials can ignite from just a spark.
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- Todo - Sep 1, 2010 at 11:38 PM
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I would have to say Love the comments…..but who really cared what happened if it’s false and they wanted attention then there you have it….if its true then cool thats new to me.
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- Lisa - Sep 2, 2010 at 1:03 AM
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Eat your heart out Tiger Woods!!!
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- Dasbearjuden - Sep 2, 2010 at 6:52 AM
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He was using his favorite club when the incident occured, his Taylormade Burner.
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- Dasbearjuden - Sep 2, 2010 at 6:55 AM
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He was using his favorite club during the incident, his Taylormade Burner.
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- Larry - Sep 2, 2010 at 8:26 AM
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We did stop talking about Tigers divorce for a day. we all have bad games
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- bjt - Sep 3, 2010 at 10:41 AM
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what bright spark let him play in the first place, flaming helli
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- C-Wick - Sep 3, 2010 at 11:52 AM
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Footjoy gator skin golf shoes… $265.00
Large polish hotdog at the turn… $6.00
Club membership at Shady Canyon GC… Too expensive to post on the Shady Canyon website.
Spending Saturday afternoon burning up the golf course with friends… Priceless!!
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- Shi-Zhu - Sep 3, 2010 at 8:48 PM
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Same as any other out-of-bounds. Drop a ball and take the extra stroke.
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