On the Perils, Legal and Otherwise, of Golf
According to the WSJ Law Blog, the New York Court of Appeals is set to deliberate a case on the perils of golf. Here's the Wall Street Journal's Ashby Jones on the background of the case:
You couldn’t teach a better lead paragraph in an article than the one in this AP story, out Monday.
It reads:
"Two doctors are playing golf on Long Island. One hits such a poor shot from the rough that it hits his partner, standing somewhere off to the side, in the head. Whose fault is that?"
Whose fault indeed? Should the victim have to suffer the consequences of the shot, having assumed the risk of being struck by a golf ball simply by stepping onto the course? Or, should the shot-taker be held liable for not having abided by the custom of yelling “Fore!” after a lousy (and potentially dangerous) shot?
Richard is the expert on torts, so I await his opinion. But my view is that anyone who steps foot on a golf course knowingly puts his life into the hands of others.
I've never understood the attraction of hitting a small white ball a great distance, and then walking to it, and then hitting it again. For hours and hours at a time. Lots of sports involve hitting balls on a field or court, but they usually involve vigorous exercise.
Golf must score for the highest expenditure of dollars and time per calories burnt. The only thing to recommend it is the clothing. The Long Island doctors should try my game, squash, where two people with long racquets trap themselves in a small room and hit a hard rubber ball--one gets hit by the ball, racquets, and limbs all the time.
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Re: On the Perils, Legal and Otherwise, of Golf
John has taken a torts question and turned it into a modern day version of Mark Twain's notorious critique of the game: "Golf is a good walk spoiled."
Such elitism! And against a sport that is elitist to its core. The last time I played golf was in 1972, where my great achievement was to get one ball airborne before calling it a day. But I do like to watch the game because of the real craft and elegance that escapes brutes like John, who like to push and be pushed on the squash court in a game that has already claimed one of my two front teeth. (Thirty five years later, basketball got the other one.)
Re: On the Perils, Legal and Otherwise, of Golf
John should only know of the nerves, planning and imagination that go into fashioning a shot. The pace is languid, not frantic. The English accents are a delight to hear. And for a short moment in my life I feel a release from the usual pressures of work. So to each his own.
We should all be thankful that cultural criticism is never backed by the force of law. Remember, by any economic standard, a lot more money is spent each year on golf than on squash. Could the market ever be wrong?
Edited on Nov 17, 2010 at 7:48amRe: On the Perils, Legal and Otherwise, of Golf
As to the legal issue, assumption of risk is part of the picture. And in most cases, it is all of the picture. But it is easy to think of cases where the issues are more complex.
First, injuries to those off the golf course. These cases tend to excuse the hitters on the ground that even the best of golfers have to slice the ball once in a while. I am not nearly as tolerant of this effort to allow folks to export misery on hapless strangers. No subsidy through the tort law.
Second, other injuries divide into several groups. If you do not look out for the group in front of you, and hit the golf ball when they are on the green, liability strikes me as plausible because of the clear breach of a customary practice. But the paucity of cases on this point leaves me uncertain as to how judges come out on it.
If it is someone in your own group that you hit, the case is much harder because both parties should be on the look out, and hitting someone in plain view cannot be excused by saying that you concentrated on the ball.
Edited on Nov 17, 2010 at 7:57amRe: On the Perils, Legal and Otherwise, of Golf
Third, golf balls often hit those folks who live near the fairway, and in these cases, the condominium rules may insulate the golfers from potential liability.
Edited on Nov 17, 2010 at 8:03amMay '10
Re: On the Perils, Legal and Otherwise, of Golf
I used to get Referee magazine, a publication of the The National Federation of State High School Associations and in it they had a legal column. One issue told of the story of a baseball umpire successfully sued by the parents of a catcher who got behind the plate without a cup. He took a direct shot to the furniture department and suffered generational damages, so to speak. The judge ruled that it was the umpire's responsibility to make sure players on the field were properly equipped. So, umpiring is great training for a TSA job.
Re: On the Perils, Legal and Otherwise, of Golf
Finally, whatever the right answer, I am confident that tort liability for dangerous drugs is a more pressing topic for legal reform.
Enough said, or is it too much said.
Edited on Nov 17, 2010 at 8:04amRe: On the Perils, Legal and Otherwise, of Golf
EJHill
So, umpiring is great training for a TSA job. · Nov 17 at 7:57am
I love that THIS is the conclusion you jump to! You get a C for logical reasoning and an A+ for wit : )
May '10
Re: On the Perils, Legal and Otherwise, of Golf
Emily Esfahani Smith, Ed.
EJHill So, umpiring is great training for a TSA job. · Nov 17 at 7:57am
I love that THIS is the conclusion you jump to! You get a C for logical reasoning and an A+ for wit : ) · Nov 17 at 8:08am
To me, it's perfectly logical. I have had to ask young men for proof that they are wearing a cup out on the diamond. Our association demands it. Knock! Knock!
Nov '10
Re: On the Perils, Legal and Otherwise, of Golf
Richard Epstein: Third, golf balls often hit those folks who live near the fairway, and in these cases, the condominium rules may insulate the golfers from potential liability. · Nov 17 at 7:52am
Edited on Nov 17 at 08:03 am
It’s likely the condominium rules insulate the golf course, not the golfers.
Edited on Nov 17, 2010 at 8:33amOct '10
Re: On the Perils, Legal and Otherwise, of Golf
As President of my golf league, I must protest the denigration of this fine sport. We all walk a significantly mountainous (for Ohio) course, even in 95 degree heat during August. The great irony of golf is that the ball doesn't move, yet it is the most difficult game to master.
Just because Obama plays frequently doesn't mean that it's wrong.
Edited on Nov 17, 2010 at 9:44amJul '10
Re: On the Perils, Legal and Otherwise, of Golf
It is also customary that the one furthest from the hole is the next one to play and no two golfers play at the same time. Generally, when waiting Yer turn there is nothing else to do except watch the next one up swing. The one that was struck was only 20 ft. away. It is absolutely unreasonable to expect the golfer to yell "fore" unless he yells it as he is swinging.
The only "victim," due to the lawsuit, is the game of Golf, supposedly a "Gentleman's Game."
May '10
Re: On the Perils, Legal and Otherwise, of Golf
A golf course is Nature's Cathedral, as PG Wodehouse would say.
Being locked up in a small space with sweaty guys wielding weapons sounds more like a prison riot.
Personally, I get nervous at a baseball game sitting behind the plate just where the netting leaves off. Though do pay more attention to the game that way.
Sep '10
Re: On the Perils, Legal and Otherwise, of Golf
No kidding, is it me or does it seem like any new drug will get a class action law suit at some point?