A golf course in Minnesota has been severely damaged because of an intense hailstorm.
The storm hit Oakdale Golf Club last Friday afternoon, releasing giant hailstones onto the course and leaving holes in its greens.
One player, Derek Hasselberg, described the incident to Minnesota news website Bring Me The News. He said: "We went into the shelter on number 13 because lightning was coming. Didn't expect the hail. Lasted about 10 minutes maybe. Started as dime size and then it escalated."
Bring Me The News also reports that, after returning to the clubhouse, Hasselberg noticed vehicles parked at the club had also been damaged by the storm, which saw hailstones the size of baseballs.
Following the storm, an update was posted on the golf club’s Facebook page, confirming the course would need to close for several days to clean it up and repair the damage.
It began: “As many of you already know, we got hit with a large hail storm late Friday afternoon. The course and club house will be closed at least through Monday for clean up and repair. We will keep you updated as we progress on our clean up efforts.“
Further messages followed, providing updates on the progress as volunteers stepped in to help with repair work. The latest read: “Another day of storm cleanup completed! It’s amazing how much was accomplished in the past two days!
"Many, many thanks to the wonderful crew of volunteers and employees who put in a hard day’s work to help us. We couldn’t have done it without you all! Thank you! Your generosity and support has been overwhelming.”
The storm developed around 3.45pm local time in Kandiyohi County before hitting the club at Buffalo Lake around an hour later. It then tracked east-southeast, where it diminished in intensity.
At the beginning of the year, huge damage was caused to Monterey Peninsula when a storm battered its Dunes and Shore courses.
