Senior Survives Alligator Attack in Florida

75-Year-Old Man Bitten, Dragged by Alligator at a Golf Course Pond

...Miller, 75, is at home recovering from being bitten and dragged by a 9-foot alligator while he was playing golf last Wednesday. Miller was playing a four-ball tournament with his friend, 66-year-old Ted Price last Wednesday at Lake Ashton Golf and Country Club.  Price said his ball landed closest to the 15th hole, but Miller had hooked his into the water that borders the green.

The golf course uses the pond for irrigation water, Price said, so the water is clear, not muddy. No one saw an alligator, Price said, but in retrospect believes they should have been more cautious because of that.

Miller went over to the edge of the water with a ball retriever tool, and found two balls that weren't his, so he turned to leave.

Pretty clever of the gator to leave a few spare golf balls nearby as bait.

That's when the alligator launched at him from under the water and got him by his left knee. "He lifted me up three feet and slammed me down," Miller said. Price ran over and grabbed Miller under his shoulders while the animal was thrashing and pulling. The other two golfers in the foursome ran over to help.

Miller said the animal took one look at him and clamped down harder. "It was excruciating to say the least," Miller said.

As the animal started dragging Miller into the water, Miller prayed for a miracle. He got one.

"He let me go," Miller said. "I was three feet from my life. He had me submerged up to my belt buckle. That was my miracle of the month."

I guess it's a good thing golf isn't a solitary sport.

I used to wade in Florida ponds at night while fishing.  Sometimes I even had stringers of fish tied to my leg.  Never saw a gator, but I know some were around.  Ah, the stupidity of youth....

In the emergency room at Winter Haven Hospital, Miller had to have 35 to 40 stitches to close a 10-inch lance wound, and two other 5-inch wounds. "He just filleted me," he said. "You could see into the bone." Miller also had puncture and claw marks. He was worried to lose his knee capsule — a water-tight fibrous casing that encloses the space within the joint.

If that was punctured, he would face several surgeries and long rehabilitation. So far, it appears to be OK, but his knee is too swollen for doctors to get good CAT scan or MRI images of the joint, Miller said.

Hat tip to Eatmofish. 

Choot him, Elizabeth!