Some great divers in the ocean can't adjust to the conditions. 31 in a 10-to-15-foot-deep lake after apparently running out of air while he and his brother were combing the lake for golf balls.ĭiving freshwater in South Florida isn't for everyone, Yeager said. Mark Feher, 21, of Lauderhill drowned on Dec. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration accident database shows OSHA has investigated 10 commercial diving deaths since 1972, and none of them involved divers who make their living diving for golf balls. "The guys that actually do it have a pretty good record," Yeager said, "And again, it could be just pure luck also."Ī search of the U.S. Despite the recent fatality, Yeager said the divers who retrieve golf balls commercially seem to do so safely. He also teaches public safety diving and dive rescue. Paul Yeager, the dive team coordinator for Sunrise, pulls cars and people out of canals and lakes all over Broward County.
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Those who are familiar with diving South Florida's numerous canals and lakes understand the risks. The water in the golf ponds is not the cleanest in the world. "I wouldn't do it," said Dunn, himself a diver. Those who dive say it's a decent living, especially if one has contracts with golf courses. Some courses and shops pay 50 cents apiece, Colombo said others work out a deal in which the diver gets to keep a certain number of golf balls to resell and gives the rest back to the course. "It's one of the most lucrative things that we have, to be honest with you," said Colombo, who also owns golf shops in Stuart and Jensen Beach. To his customers, he sells a dozen used golf balls for as low as $3 or as high as $24, depending on the quality. Colombo pays anywhere from 10 cents to 30 cents apiece for them. Rick Columbo, owner of Rick's Golf Shop in Palm Beach Gardens, buys balls from individual divers and people who live or work on golf courses.
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A diver might collect hundreds of balls on one day's sweep of golf course lakes. He probably ran out of air, authorities speculate.ĭespite the risks and a certain amount of discomfort, a diver can make a livable wage collecting these balls from area lakes. A Lauderhill man died on New Year's Eve while diving for golf balls in a lake at the Links of Boynton Beach.