I'm not your usual golf gambler, refusing to make even the smallest of bets on most occasions, but there was something about playing my good friend Brian on this particular day that made me pull out my wallet and challenge him to a little action. We were at Pala Mesa Golf Resort about 45 miles or so northeast of San Diego, and it was a perfect afternoon for playing golf and taking all his money!

We teed up about 4 in the afternoon on a very comfortable spring day. The temperature as a perfect 74 degrees, the sky was dotted with small puffs of cotton, the sun was shining bright and I was feeling great! The betting action started out innocuous enough, five bucks per side, another five for the total and a dollar a putt, counting every stroke once our ball arrived on the green (I had been hoodwinked by Brian before when he putted his ball off the green several times when the pin was set close to the edge of the green and he refused to count those comebackers as putts, as they were from "off the green"). 

Like I said, I was feeling great that day, and since Brian usually beat me by 3 to 5 strokes per round, I got my usual two strokes per side. I was actually beating him straight up this day, winning the front by three strokes, 42 to 45, and up by two strokes on the back by the time we reached the final par 3 of the day. I could already taste those ice cold frosty treats he was going to buy me in the clubhouse after the round!

I teed off on that final par 3 (I forget the exact number of the hole) and hit another beauty, landing on the green and rolling to within about 15 feet of the pin - another probable winning hole! Brian hit his tee shot close to the green, but just off, which he preferred since he could usually chip really close for his putt and win that part of the bet, and we got in the cart and headed down the hill to the green. We parked the cart, got out and just as we were approaching the green a very healthy looking coyote ran out across the green and snatched my ball and took off with it to both our amazement!

Well, needless to say, this caused Brian to make up some sort of a rule that said I was to be penalized two shots and had to go tee off again, as my ball was clearly out of bounds and lost once the coyote took off. I didn't have any idea at the time that I could actually get a free drop as close to the point my ball was lying, and Brian (who had a much better understanding of the rules - or so I thought) was adamant about the penalty, so I stormed back to the tee box, shanked one almost out of bounds into some iceplant (which is VERY tough to hit out of), then ended up taking another five shots including two to get out of the iceplant before finally sinking a three inch putt for a dandy little 8 - five over on a hole that I should have had a good chance to birdie!

Well, that was the end of my feeling good that day, and I proceeded to blow the final couple of holes on my way to buying Brian the beers!

If you're ever playing Pala Mesa Golf Resort and you see a nice healthy looking coyote hanging around the green on the final par 3 with a suspicious grin on his face will you do me a favor and drop a nice big 200-pound Acme anvil on his head for me? Thanks!

Submitted by Michael Gerard, Carlsbad, CA