Trouble for you, Imperial Beach rogue golfer

Over a dozen Imperial Beach locals have found and heard errant golf balls land in their yards and hit their roofs. The closest golf course to the beachfront city is about nine miles north in Coronado, quite a distance even for Tiger Woods' near-500-yard drives. So the golf balls were definitely coming from within the same IB neighborhoods they were landing in — but nobody was yelling "fore."

"It's dangerous because a flying golf ball can hit a car, break a windshield or window and cause a serious accident," said Cristbel Adams, a mother, and copywriter who's lived in IB for about seven years. "If a golf ball hits a person in the head, it can cause serious injuries."

Lori W. lives east of the Tijuana River Estuary. "Someone is hitting golf balls that are landing in mine and neighbors' yards," she said and posted a photo of three stray golf balls on Facebook on February 23. "I can hear them ping my house. This is dangerous and potentially damaging to individuals, pets, and personal property."

A neighbor who lives on the same street as Lori commented, "We get them too. So dangerous 'cause I have kids that play in the yard."

Adams, the first mother I spoke with on March 7, and her neighbor Mel think the random golf balls might be kids messing with their fathers' clubs. "Some people are really stupid and don’t think about the consequences it can have."

Gary, another parent in the area, who swears that he solely putts golf balls in his backyard, thinks the rogue golfers are kids. "Since that TikTok influencer's video went viral, these kids think it's funny to whack a ball 300 yards from anywhere."

Gary refers to Katie Sigmond, a then 19-year-old golf influencer, who posted a TikTok video of herself driving a golf ball into the Grand Canyon late last year and breaking her club. At the time, Sigmond had nearly 3 million followers on Instagram and 7 million followers on TikTok; the incriminating video went viral.

According to Golf Digest, a Grand Canyon National Parks Service's public affairs specialist said Sigmond faced three Class B misdemeanor charges which could be as high as $1,000 in fines. Sigmond quickly deleted her incriminating video clip.

The Golf Digest article said Jake Adams, a comedian, faced charges for hitting a golf ball in Yellowstone Park in 2021.

In the last year, six IB neighbors who live east of the estuary by Lori came forward online and said they found multiple errant golf balls land in their yards and streets. And despite calculating the golf balls' trajectories and where they were predominantly landing, nobody could figure out who was the rogue golfer except for one person. "I gathered them (golf balls) all up and figured out which house they came from," the IB dweller posted online. "Then I put them in a basket and set them on their front porch. They were landing on my house, near my children and myself, and near my livestock. It stopped, or I was ready to call the police. That could be assault with a deadly weapon."

Kenneth J. claims there's another rogue golfer in IB. "Some a-hole was launching golf balls on the beach and hit my wife," he said. "Don't be him."