Woman’s eye explodes after being struck with a golf ball at the Ryder Cup
A golf spectator lost vision in one of her eyes Friday after an errant golf ball veered from the course, struck her in the eye socket and caused her eyeball to explode, Sky News reported.
The woman, 49-year-old Corine Remande, was watching the Ryder Cup golf tournament southwest of Paris Friday when American golfer and PGA champion Brooks Koepka took a shot on the course, The Independent reported.
The ball flew down the course and into the crowd, where it struck Remande in the eye. Medics rushed over to her, bandaged up her face and took her to the hospital.
“I obviously saw her. It looked like it hurt. She was bleeding pretty good. It looked like it hit her right in the eye, so hopefully there’s no, you know, loss of vision or anything like that,“ Koepka said at the time, according to The Independent.
A video from Sky News shows Koepka take the shot, and shows the ball flying through the air before landing in a small crowd of spectators.
“Ooh, hit someone in the gallery,” the TV announcer says.
On Monday, Remande said she had lost vision in the eye and was considering legal action, according to the AFP news agency.
“It happened so fast, I didn’t feel any pain when I was hit,” she said, according to the agency. “I didn’t feel like the ball had struck my eye and then I felt the blood start to pour. The scan on Friday confirmed a fracture of the right eye-socket and an explosion of the eyeball.”
Remande said nobody had shouted a warning that the ball was incoming, and said the event organizers had a responsibility for safety, according to Sky News.
“More than anything I want them to take care of all the medical bills to make sure there is no risk of infection,” she said, according to the site.
A spokesperson for the Ryder Cup called the news “distressing” and said care and therapy was being given, according to ESPN.
“Ball strikes are an occasional hazard for spectators but this kind of incident is extremely rare. We can confirm that ‘fore’ was shouted several times but also appreciate how hard it can be to know when and where every ball is struck if you are in the crowd. We are hugely sympathetic and will do everything we can to support the spectator, insofar as that is possible under very difficult circumstances,” the statement read, according to the site.
The EPGA, which regulates European golf, was investigating the incident, The Telegraph reported.
Keopka expressed remorse and sympathy for Remande, The Sun reported.
“It doesn’t feel good. You feel terrible for them. You know exactly how they are feeling, especially when you’ve got to go over to apologise because they are in pain, usually bleeding, and then to hit her in the face is not - you don’t want to hit anyone in the face, especially not a woman,” he said, according to the paper.