ATLANTA – Six people were injured Saturday at East Lake Golf Club when lightning struck a 60-foot pine tree where they were taking cover from rain and showered them with debris, Atlanta police said.
The third round of the Tour Championship, the PGA Tour’s season finale, had been suspended for about 30 minutes because of storms in the area, and fans were instructed to seek shelter. The strike hit the top of the tree just off the 16th tee and shattered the bark all the way to the bottom.
Atlanta resident Brad Uhl was crammed under a hospitality tent to the right of the 16th hole that was open to the public.
“There was just a big explosion and then an aftershock so strong you could feel the wind from it,” Uhl said after the last of the ambulances pulled out of the golf course. “It was just a flash out of the corner of the eye. It was raining and everyone was huddled near the tree.”
Uhl said the people on the ground were moving around before the ambulances arrived.