Posted: January 6th, 2016

Does the golf club’s duty include an obligation to provide golfers on its course with an adequate warning of the small risk of injury from an occasional aggressive kangaroo?

Simon and his young friend, Ben, were playing a round of golf on a course on the outskirts of Sydney. They paid their green fees and started to play. Simon and Ben had played golf on this course on a number of occasions before. On most, if not all occasions, Simon had encountered kangaroos at various points on the course.

 

Ben hit a ball into the rough where the grass was about 1 metre high on the third fairway.   Notwithstanding a mob of kangaroos feeding in the grass, Simon went in and began to search for the ball.

 

Whilst doing this he heard a sound which was like a dog’s growling. He turned and saw a large male kangaroo, which was taller than he was, erect on its hind legs, looking in his direction.

 

Ben backed away from it but the kangaroo hopped towards him. Simon ran, but the kangaroo chased him and brought him to the ground.

 

An adult golfer, who had just hit his ball off the tee, heard screaming and ran the 70m to where the kangaroo was attacking Simon. As he approached, he yelled out at the kangaroo which hopped away. The kangaroo returned to the attack so this other player hit the kangaroo on the head with the driver that he had just used and was still in his hand. The kangaroo then left.

 

Simon was taken to hospital.

 

The numerous kangaroos on the course were an advantage in tourist patronage terms. In the 10 years prior to the attack on Simon, an average of approximately 42,000 rounds of golf had been played on the course annually by members and visitors, and kangaroos had caused only a small number of problems.

 

The kangaroos were Eastern Grey kangaroos, which are generally not aggressive. Aggression is more likely during their breeding season, but even then it is rare. Children, because of their smaller stature, are more at risk from attack than adults.

 

The golf club had sought and been granted permission to cull individual kangaroos which had exhibited aggressive behaviour several times prior to the attack on Simon. Other than that, it did nothing about the kangaroos on its course. It did not require employees to check for and report aggressive behaviour by kangaroos, it had not attempted to obtain available information concerning the nature and extent of the risk from kangaroos or means by which it could be eliminated or reduced, and it did not give golfers using its course any information or warning concerning the kangaroos.

 

The golf club now has added a warning to the scorecards which it distributes to golfers, copied from another golf course, namely:

 

“Wildlife can be hazardous – do not approach”

 

Does the golf club’s duty include an obligation to provide golfers on its course with an adequate warning of the small risk of injury from an occasional aggressive kangaroo? Using evidence to support your answer, discuss whether the omission by the golf club to warn that kangaroos might attack players amounted to a breach of duty.

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