For many people, living on a golf course sounds like a dream.
The sound of drivers smacking a golf ball off of the tee, watching a perfect approach shot from off the green, even popping onto the course for free during the twilight of summer evenings are all wonderful possibilities. But there’s a downside to golf course living.
A barrage of errant golf shots could turn an idyllic home into a nightmare.
For the Tenczar family, their dream home on the 15th fairway of Indian Pond Estates turned into an everyday fear of walking outside, as golf balls rained down on their property, putting their three young daughters at risk. It’s also turned into a nice payday.
“They bought what they thought was their dream house and it became a nightmare for them,” Bob Galvin, the Tenczars’ lawyer, said according to The Boston Globe. “They couldn’t do anything outside during the golf season.”
According to The Globe, the Tenczar family were awarded $3.5 million in December for “damages and mental and emotional suffering” after suing the Indian Pond Country Club for trespass after hundreds of golf balls have landed on their property since their purchase in 2017, shattering multiple windows on the home. With interest, the family will be awarded $4.9 million.
Erik and Athina Tenczar purchased their home in 2017 for $750,000, and say they have collected over 700 golf balls that have landed on their property.
“Should we have looked into chances our house would be hit? Probably. I don’t know,” Erik Tenczar said. “We just fell in love with the house. It was our first house.”
The family said that the situation became so bad that neighborhood children would wear bicycle helmets when they went outside in order to play.
“When it hits, it sounds like a gunshot,” Athina Tenczar said when describing a golf ball that hit the house. “It’s very scary.”
According to Erik Tenczar, they tried appealing to the golf course, with no luck.
“We started calling the police because there was nothing else we could do,” Athina Tenczar said.
“We never wanted a lawsuit; nobody wants a lawsuit,” she continued. “We tried to go in civilly and work with them. We got some communication but then it stopped.”
The lawyer representing the golf course, John Flemming, says that the accusation that the club did nothing to try and find a solution to the Tenczars problem is incorrect.
“It’s not true that the golf course didn’t do anything,” Flemming said. “A suggestion that we were completely unresponsive, I don’t think is accurate at all.”
The lawyer has also stated that he’s confident that the injunction will be struck down, filing an appeal in March.
“I’m extremely confident that the injunction will be struck down,” Flemming said. “In my opinion, as a matter of law, the verdict of $3.5 million for alleged emotional distress is against the weight of the evidence.”
For the family, the last few months have been a welcome relief, as the golf course moved the 15th hole, and the Tenczars haven’t had a golf ball land on their property in months.
Joe Morgan is the Sports Reporter for The Daily Wire. Most recently, Morgan covered the Clippers, Lakers, and the NBA for Sporting News. Send your sports questions to [email protected].