Extraordinary moment golfer kills bird with tee shot before official is forced to pick it up

Isi Gabsa accidentally killed - or seriously injured - a bird after hitting a 'a million to one shot' on the golf course.

The 28-year-old was competing in the US Women’s Open in Pennsylvania on Thursday (30 May) when her 12th hole shot knocked a bird out of the sky.

As she hit her shot on the par, her ball landed on the green, along with the golf-struck bird.

The bird appeared to be lifeless at its body remained still.

“On the list of bizarre things that we have seen on the 12th hole, this one is kinda sad, takes the cake,” commentator Brandel Chamblee said.

“Just a bird sitting on the green, minding its own business.”

“Brutal,” co-host Kira K. Dixon added.

“That’s nothing you ever want to see on the golf course.”

Meanwhile, a nearby official was called to deal with the sad situation.

He took to the green as everybody watched on and picked up the bird to carry it away.

Gabsa then finished the hole with a par.

Viewers were stunned, as one person tweeted: "Aw its mate was circling! :-(."

"That was a million to one shot," another insisted, while a third wrote: "I have only seen this happen one other time in years past, the ball is still in play lol."

Others referenced the time Arizona Diamondback pitcher Randy Johnson hit a bird with a pitch on 24 March, 2001.

"Wow. The chance of this happening has to be astronomical," a fourth said.

"Even higher than hitting a bird with a pitch."

"Impressive, I think it’s easier to get a hole-in-one. Than hit a bird," a fifth penned.

"Aw poor little buddy. That would have been a great approach shot if not for the deflection," someone else said.

CBS' Patrick McDonald shared the video on X and captioned it: "Randy Johnson's smiling somewhere."

Randy Johnson’s smiling somewhere pic.twitter.com/DYRCHWp8oh

— Patrick McDonald (@pmcdonaldCBS) May 30, 2024

Johnson was up against Calvin Murray of the San Francisco Giants during a spring training game when he let loose a fastball that collided with a bird.

Justin Lehman, ornithology graduate student at the University of Tennessee told News Week: "I was 11 at the time, so I'm sure I found this event incredibly funny. Looking back, I am just in awe of the incredibly poor luck that bird had.

"Obviously I feel bad for the bird. However, I'd imagine it probably had a very quick death and probably didn't feel much pain.

"Millions of birds die to human caused events each year (building collisions, feral/outdoor cat depredation, habitat destruction, etc.), so a few birds being hit by baseballs seems pretty minor in comparison."

LADbible has contacted USGA for comment.