Forget landing in a bunker… golfers were faced with navigating two angry lions, twenty hyenas and even a dead giraffe in what must be the world’s trickiest Par 5!
Play at Skukuza Gold Club in the heart of Kruger National Park, eastern South Africa was forced to stop until the ‘hazards’ could be cleared.
Two hunting lionesses at the nine-hole, eighteen-tee course, which is unfenced from the wild animals, had brought down a fully-grown giraffe on the fairway for breakfast.
But as they tucked in and waited for the rest of the pride to join them, they were ambushed by a pack of twenty equally hungry hyenas who had smelled the fresh kill.
A pack of starving hyenas snacked on the dead giraffe before golfers could play on the course
The lioness comes fact to face with hyenas on the fairway
The lioness changes her mind and makes a swift exit, leaving the hyenas to feast in peace
Due to the sheer weight of numbers the predatory hyena pack were able to shoo off the lions and claim the spoils, feasting on the stricken giraffe for a dawn meal.
Although the two angry lionesses made several attempts to regain their hard-earned kill, they were no match for the smaller but more numerous hyenas in feeding frenzy.
The crazy golf course in the middle of the Kruger National Park was initially built for staff in 1972 but opened up to members who live locally before adding tourists.
But it comes with its own set of dangerous hazards as no fences separate golfers from the Big Five of lions, leopards, buffalos, elephants and rhinos plus other killer predators.
A giraffe sips on water from a pond by one of the holes at the Kruger National Park golf club
Players are warned to beware of lions waltzing around the fairway as they tee off
There have been repeated encounters by club members with lions, hippos, leopards, elephants, giraffes, wild dogs, pythons, cobras and warthogs. Pictured: the site’s clubhouse
There have been repeated encounters by club members with lions, hippos, leopards, elephants, giraffes, wild dogs, pythons, cobras and warthogs on the Par 72, 5831m course.
And troops of playful baboons can even nab players’ golf clubs and golf balls or flags.
A round on the course costs £14 for nine holes and £20 for 18 holes.
Players are not allowed to tee off unless they sign an indemnity card clearing the club in case they are eaten.
Club Captain and green-keeper Jean Rossouw, 32, described Skukuza as the ‘World’s Wildest Course’ and said: ‘In 2019 I came face to face with eight lions and had to chase them off!
‘An important part of my job is the early morning tour of the course to make sure all our overnight ‘guests’ are gone and that it is safe for our members and guests to tee-off.
‘We are in the wild out here as there are no fences to stop the Big 5 or any other animals coming through. No two days are the same and it is a wonderful place to play your golf.
But the picturesque site can be home to predictably violent scenes as the animals go at it
Club Captain and green-keeper Jean Rossouw described it as the ‘World’s Wildest Course’
‘What happened here was 4 young lions and lionesses came in and killed a giraffe at about 6.30am but were driven off by 20 plus hyenas who started ripping into the giraffe eating it.
‘Obviously we had players who wanted to tee-off so we had to get rangers from the South African National Park who own and run the Kruger National Park to come and deal with it.
‘By the time they arrived to lift the giraffe away the hyenas and vultures and devoured about a quarter of it and then took it to another part of the park so they could continue eating it.
‘Within 12 hours there was nothing left but bones after the hyenas and vultures had finished with it and I guess the lions had to go and look for their breakfast somewhere else.
‘The golfers due to tea off had an early breakfast and some coffees and were delayed about an hour and a half while we moved the lions and hyenas and the giraffes out the way.
‘It is what makes Skukuza so special not knowing what is going to happen every time you play’ he said.
The South African National Parks who run the Kruger and the course said: ‘It’s not fenced in so uninvited spectators are a common sight with lions, leopard and hippo to name a few!’
If a lion came up against a hyena in a fight to the death the lion would always come out on top due to its greater size, speed and power unless it was elderly or has been injured.
For the tale of the tape a lion weighs up to 600lbs compared to 190lbs for a hyena, can be 8 feet in length compared to 5 feet for a hyena, and 4ft at shoulder compared to 3ft for a hyena.
Lions can reach speeds of 50mph and cover the length of a football pitch in six seconds whereas a hyena is slower at 40mph but their strength is travelling in such huge numbers
Because of the power of the hyena bite if the size of their pack greatly outnumbers a lion pride then the lions may choose to give up the kill rather than risk serious injury to poor odds.
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