Filed by Rick Danner.
The Coyote Had A Tee Time
The Coyote Had A Tee Time
Rick “Wolfpack” Danner here.
I’ve reviewed the footage several times, and this was not random wildlife behavior. The coyote approached at full speed with complete target fixation, bypassing acres of open terrain and several perfectly acceptable escape routes to engage a very specific concentration of golfers. That tells me the objective was never food. This was a disruption operation. The leap into the golf cart, the collision with the golf bag, and the immediate withdrawal all suggest a classic strike-and-confuse maneuver designed to collapse normal golf procedures before anybody understood they were participating.
The golfers never had a chance because golfers operate under a dangerous assumption: that the biggest threat on the tee box is another golfer explaining his handicap. Nobody arrives expecting a hostile coyote to conduct a mobile inspection of the cart fleet. By the time the first person realizes the incoming object has teeth instead of a tee time, the operation has already reached the equipment phase.
I’ve seen similar commitment only once before, when an outraged goose intercepted a golfer’s putter, then minutes later another goose executed a low-altitude strike on a golf bag as if both birds had attended the same planning meeting. Different species. Same confidence. Wildlife has clearly begun auditing golf courses.
My conclusion remains unchanged: if an animal approaches a golf course at full speed, assume it has already made a decision you haven’t.
Field note: if an animal approaches a golf course at full speed, assume it has already made a decision you haven’t.