WATCH: PGA Tour pros encounter massive alligator on the fairway and have wildly different reactions
When strolling down the fairway, it’s usually only your next stroke you have on your mind.
However, for two PGA Tour golfers, a close encounter with an American alligator drew contrasting reactions.
The scary episode took place at the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill Club and Lodge in the suburbs of Orlando, Florida.
Gators are a common sight in Florida, but no amount of pre-warning can prepare you for a face-to-face interaction.
PGA Tour pair Cody Gribble and Smylie Kaufman didn’t quite have the same response when walking past the reptile.
Gribble from Alabama took a more confident approach to removing the deadly obstacle in his path, knocking the gator’s tail as it disappeared off the fairway.
Kaufman, on the other hand, didn’t react with quite the same swagger and took evasive action when fronted by the Floridian beast.
With American Gators being residents at many golf courses in Florida, they are just as much of a deterrent as the imposing bunkers to local golfers.
The luscious conditions on American golf courses are reportedly the perfect oasis for gators, with more and more chilling out on the green fairways.
Courses in the States, particularly Florida, recommend taking caution if you encounter an alligator on the property, with the predator only a mild risk to humans. But you never know when they’re hungry!
If you are embarking on a round of golf where you know gators may reside, it’s best to be careful and not encroach on their space or touch them like PGA pro-Gribble.
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