It was reported in the press a couple of weeks ago that a British tourist, Dougie Thomson,58, of Wishaw near Glasgow, was playing golf at the Iberostar Cancun Hotel complex in Mexico, when he hit a poor shot into a bunker. At this stage I’m almost certain the last thing on Dougie’s mind was his travel insurance.
As he played his next shot which landed comfortably on the green, a twelve foot crocodile decided that Dougie was looking like a mouthwateringly convenient snack, launching itself from behind a bush and latching itself onto his thigh. Luckily for Dougie he was in a fourball and not the twoball which he originally arranged to play in, so as one of his friends proceeded to run the creature over with a golf buggy, the other two beat it relentlessly with their clubs, essentially saving Dougie’s life, something which he later reflected on:
“The crocodile tore away all the muscle in my thigh. My leg is like a butcher’s shop window. Initially only two of us were going golfing. If that had happened, there is no way one friend could have helped. It would have pulled me back into the lagoon and had me for supper” he said.
With Dougie’s travel insurance in place, he was carted off to the nearest hospital where doctors sewed him back together with around 200 stitches, and were subsequently monitoring him for infections and tendon damage.
This not the first time a golfer has been attacked at the resort. Several months ago, an American resident of Long Island, 50 year old Edward Lunger had a not dissimilar experience, again whilst attempting to escape from a bunker. Apparently a large female croc again launched an attack from nearby bushes biting down on his left arm. He was saved by the quick thinking of his friend who smashed a 40lb rock on the reptile’s head.
The difference in this case is that Mr. Lunger was allegedly forced to pay the $17,800 bill upfront before he could get any treatment, which was facilitated by himself and his friends all having to drain their credit cards. I have no evidence at all that this was due to his inability to obtain adequate travel insurance, CompareCrazy’s exclusive offerings being unavailable to citizens of the USA, but there are two things I do know. Firstly,as a UK citizen you can compare competitive travel insurance here at CompareCrazy.com. The business insurance comparison site! Secondly, if you’re playing golf at the Iberostar Cancun Hotel complex in Mexico and you inadvertently hit a ball into a bunker, probably best you leave it there!
