‘I’m Heartbroken. I’m All Messed Up Inside’: After Causing a Fan’s Eyeball to Explode, Brooks Koepka Suffered One of the Worst Days of His Life

Golf is considered one of the safest games to play as compared to other American sports. Restricted movement and a reduced need for peak fitness are a few reasons golf is picked up as a sport, especially among the older generation. However, the same cannot be said about spectators at golf courses. Wayward shots can hit the gallery, causing serious injuries and can sometimes be fatal. The feeling of hitting someone unintentionally sounds terrible, which was the case when Brooks Koepka had one of his tee shots cause a grave injury.

Brooks Koepka and his erratic shot that hit a fan’s eye

While team USA suffered a humiliating defeat at the 2018 Ryder Cup, there was further disappointment in store for one of its players. At the Le Golf National, one of Koepka’s tee shots went wide off the fairway. It was only a few yards off but ended up hitting a spectator  named Corine Remande.

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The strike hit the eye and was brutal. In a matter of seconds, Remande lost complete vision in her right eye. The AFP reported that a scan had revealed “a fracture of the right eye socket and an explosion of the eyeball.”

Koepka was visibly heartbroken after hearing the news. “Yesterday was probably one of the worst days of my life,” said Koepka, who also posted a message along similar lines on social media.

“There’s nobody that feels worse about this than I did. It’s a tragic accident what happened. I mean, I’m heartbroken. I’m all messed up inside. In my career it will be the one shot that I definitely regret.”

Did Remande sue Koepka?

A number of major media houses got in touch with Remande to get to know her side of the story. “It happened so fast, I didn’t feel any pain when I was hit,” she said. “I didn’t feel like the ball had struck my eye and then I felt the blood start to pour.” She revealed that the doctors had told her she had lost “lost the use of that eye.”

49-year-old, Corine Remande, had traveled all the way from Egypt with her husband to watch the 2018 Ryder Cup in Paris. When asked whether she was planning to sue Koepka, Remande rebuffed. “From the player, there is no fault,” she said. “I’m just angry about the organization and all the marshals.”

She mentioned her plans to take legal action against the tournament organizers for the inadequate signage and the unhelpful attitude of marshals on the ground.

“I don’t want to change all the rules in golf,” Remande re-iterated. “I just want to improve the safety rules.”

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