At the Palos Verdes Golf Course, a truly tragic event took place in the morning of October 18, 2024. I found myself paired with Mr. Choi (not his real name), a Korean golfer who had qualified for the Tournament of Champions in the Super Seniors category.
Two weeks from that day, in our initial match against different opponents, we both won by default as our opponents were absent. With no opponents to face, we decided to play a practice round, albeit one without any real significance. Mr. Choi was a tall, left-handed, and extremely long-hitting golfer. We played, and I trailed by a stroke as we entered the 15th hole. However, I managed to even the score in that hole. After the 15th hole, he received a call and decided to stop playing.
That morning, we met again for our semi-final match. The winner of this match would go on to play for the championship on Sunday against the winner of the other bracket. Unfortunately, a very sad incident occurred. Prior to teeing off, I extended my hand as a sign of sportsmanship and wished him good luck. Little did I know what was about to unfold.
We teed off on hole 1, and he went first. His drive landed perfectly on the right side of the fairway, just before the bunker. “Good shot,” I said. My drive, on the other hand, hit a tree branch but still managed to land in the middle of the fairway, though it was only about half my usual distance. His second shot was also excellent, leaving him approximately a hundred twenty yards to the green. Again, I commented, nice shot sir!
It was my turn. I grabbed my 5 wood and hit a great shot. It landed just a few yards from his ball, about 140 yards to the green, which was perfect for my 7 iron. My third shot landed on the green, about 20 feet to the hole. He also made it to the green, about 35 feet away from the hole. He went for birdie but came up short. I got a gimme putt, which was just 6 inches from the cup!
He putted again for par but came up short, about 8 feet to the cup. He was about to putt for bogey when he stepped back from his ball marker to get a better alignment. But to my absolute shock, he suddenly fell backwards onto the green, with a faint shout of… “Oh… ohhh… oh….”
Since it was a matchplay, there were only two of us in the flight and our caddies. The flight earlier was teeing off on hole 2. As soon as I saw what had happened, I immediately ran to him as he laid on the green, his putter by his side. The caddies were shouting for help, and I instructed them to call the office for an ambulance. I saw his face turned blue, and he was not breathing at all. I quickly applied CPR, the one I learned in scouting. His teeth were clenched, but I managed to open his mouth and did mouth-to-mouth resuscitation, alternately with CPR. There was a sudden gasp of air, and his face turned back to a reddish color. I asked the caddies to take off his shoes and loosen his belt. Soon, the ambulance arrived, and the medics took over.
I retreated to my cart, drained of strength, my knees trembling. Mr. Choi was brought to the hospital, but sadly, I learned later that he was declared DOA. I really did my best to save his life, but it was not enough. I feel sorry for it. A very sad and tragic incident to witness first-hand.
Mr. Choi’s death is a tragic reminder of the importance of taking care of our health and well-being, especially as we age. It is also a reminder of the risks associated with sports and the need for proper training, conditioning, and medical supervision.
My thoughts and prayers are with Mr. Choi’s family and friends. May he rest in peace.
