A54-year-old golfer was knocked unconscious, allegedly stopped breathing for 10 seconds and was ultimately sent to the hospital after an altercation at The Links at Heartland Crossing in Morgan County, Indiana last Friday.
It all started when the middle-aged man confronted the group in front of him for “cutting,” despite him and his group stopping to order food at the clubhouse. Another in his group said “It wasn’t that big a deal” that the other group played through, but the man couldn’t let the “proper golf etiquette” slight go.
The dispute turned violent when he insulted the wife of one of the men playing through, calling her group “aholes” and telling her that she was a “c*.” Her husband, Jerry Whitaker, demanded an apology after she went “crying back to her group.” The two men then “got in each other’s faces”, according to witnesses, and after the 54-year-old declined to apologize, Whitaker proceeded to slam the agitator to the ground.
Doctors informed the police that the man had seven broken ribs, punctured lung and a piece of vertebrae in the back due to the attack. Whitaker of Brownsburg will be charged with Aggravated battery, a Level 3 felony, battery resulting in serious bodily injury, a Level 5 felony and disorderly conduct, a Class B misdemeanor.
People close to the 54-year-old said that he was knocked out and even momentarily had no pulse, dying for about ten seconds.
An Indiana Level 3 felony can attract a prison term of up to 16 years.