Long Drive contestant’s driver shaft snaps and hits fan

The last 16 of the Volvik World Long Drive Finals was packed full of excitement… with one fan getting closer to the action than he’d bargained for.

In the first televised match of the evening, which pitted Wes Patterson against Ryan Reisbeck, Patterson snapped his driver shaft and the club flew off into the crowd.

The contestant, who had earlier knocked out world No.1 Maurice Allen, went straight over to the unlucky fan who, after being taken completely by surprise, luckily seemed to be ok. Check out the footage below.

Here’s another angle:

Elsewhere at the Winstar World Casino and Resort in Oklahoma, defending champion Joe Miller is out after he was unable to match a 426-yard effort from lefty Nick Kiefer.

Kiefer will face off against Will Hogue in one of the four quarter-finals after he overcame Josh Cassaday with the longest drive of the last 16 at 437 yards.

The quarter-final matches are as follows:

Wes Patterson v Mitch Grassing

Tim Burke v Kyle Berkshire

Justin James v Paul Howell

Will Hogue v Nick Kiefer

In the women’s event, the final four have been decided. And, for those who attended Callaway’s Kings of Distance at St Andrews Links back in May, there’s a familiar face in contention.