Watch: Only in Arizona, Rattlesnake Gets Pulled Out of Ball Dispenser at Topgolf
Imagine if a rattlesnake robbed you of your hole-in-one.
A western diamondback rattlesnake had to be removed from a Topgolf facility in Scottsdale, Arizona, last month.
A snake expert had to be called in to retrieve and remove the reptile after it managed to get inside a golf ball dispenser machine, according to a report Monday by KPNX-TV in Phoenix.
Rattlesnake Solutions shared video of the removal on its YouTube channel, showing the venomous snake being snatched with a specialized clamp.
The Topgolf removal segment starts in earnest about the 3:30 mark.
The Topgolf location in question faces open desert on the east side of the metro Phoenix area — in other words, a place that rattlesnakes call home.
When released in a desert area (about the 7:40 mark in the video), the snake crawled into a hole far more appropriate for a serpent than a golf ball receptacle.
Rattlesnakes are the largest venomous snakes in the United States.
They live throughout North America, but they’re most common in Southwestern states such as Arizona, California, New Mexico and Texas, according to the National Wildlife Federation.
Thirsty #rattlesnake on my front porch, last spring.
Sat with it for about an hour before it crawled away. Moments like this are why I bought my house in the Arizona desert 16 years ago. pic.twitter.com/eiS9OG7iUL
— Joel M. Curzon (@JoelMCurzon) May 18, 2021
Venomous snakes (such as the rattlesnake) bite as many as 8,000 people every year in the U.S.
It’s rare that these snake bites end with fatalities, with only five of these bite victims dying of their injuries annually, according to the Centers for Disease Control.
The snakes — known for the eponymous “rattle” they shake when confronted with potential threats — are important for controlling rodent populations where they live, according to the National Wildlife Federation.
The rattlesnake removal company called into Topgolf was responding to as many 30 rattlesnake calls a day as recently as September, according to KNXV-TV.
Approximately 150 people are bitten by rattlesnakes in Arizona every year, according to KNXV.
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