© IE Online Media Services Pvt Ltd
Tags:
Journalism of Courage
A golfer in Florida was caught on camera retrieving a ball from a particularly dangerous hazard — the tail of an alligator. The video of the incident is now being widely shared on social media.
Kyle Downes and his brother were at the Coral Oaks Golf Course in Cape Coral when the ball landed on the alligator that was basking in the sun near a lake on the course. Instead of abandoning the ball, Downes tiptoed up to it from behind.
As he picked up the ball, the alarmed reptile hurried back into the water and Downes sprinted away.
Downes shared the video on Facebook along with a photo of the reptile. “Free drop?” he wrote in the accompanying post.
“He’s going to whip you with that tail dude,” a man is heard saying off-camera.
The alligator, a resident of the golf course, has been affectionately named Charlie.
Many on social media thought the man was brave, while others said it was a needless risk.
Downes told NBC 2 News, they weren’t antagonizing the alligator and were just trying to get their golf ball back.
