Second thoughts

Golfer uses water hazard as safe haven

Spanish golfer Pablo Larrazabal had an eventful 14th hole Friday at the Malaysian Open in Kuala Lumpur.

Larrazabal needed medical attention after being attacked by hornets at the 14th, the fifth hole of his round. His only escape while being swarmed was jumping into a water hazard.

“They were three times the size of bees,” he said. “They were huge and like 30 or 40 of them started to attack me big time. I didn’t know what to do. My caddie told me to run, so I start running like a crazy guy, but the hornets were still there, so the other players told me to jump in the lake.

“I ran to the lake, threw my scorecard down, took off my shoes and jumped in the water. It was the scariest moment of my career, for sure. I’ve never been so scared.

“I had to throw my shirt and hat away, and the towel I’d been swatting them with. The referees and a doctor took me aside and gave me a couple of injections and told me to relax. After the injections I felt a lot better and could continue. Without the help of the referees I couldn’t have finished the round, because I was in no state to play golf.

“Tomorrow it will be very, very scary to play that hole. I’m not sure what I’m going to do, but hopefully I will play it as quickly as I can.”

Despite the attack, Larrazabal birdied the hole on his way to a round of 68 and a share of 25th place at 2 under.

Not a Friend of Bill

AJ Mass, who once wore the Mr. Met costume, said in his new book that he was threatened with sniper fire between the stitches of his baseball-shaped head if he got too close to President Bill Clinton during a Shea Stadium visit in 1997.

Mass was angling to get his picture taken with Clinton on April 15, 1997 - the 50th anniversary of Jackie Robinson’s first major league game.

Accompanied by two female college interns, the costumed Mass set off in search of Clinton: “The holy grail for all mascots - a photo op and meet-and-greet with a sitting president,” Mass writes in Yes, It’s Hot in Here.

His hopes were soon crushed by an encounter with a Secret Service agent sporting a dark suit and a darker mood.

Mass recalled how the agent stared directly into the mouth of his huge faux leather head to deliver a warning that sent chills through all eight of Mr. Met’s fingers.

“ ‘We have snipers all around the stadium, just in case something were to happen,’ ” he said. “ ‘Like I said, do whatever it is you normally do. But approach the President, and we go for the kill shot. Are we clear?’

“He pauses for a moment to let the words sink in, and it feels like he isn’t only looking into my eyes, but also into my very soul with his blank, unblinking stare,” Mass writes.

“ ‘Approach the President, and we go for the kill shot,’ ” he repeats. ‘ARE - WE - CLEAR?’ ”

Mass, whose book was excerpted on the Huffington Post, recalled the agent first started eyeing him up after his failure to get Mr. Met’s head through an onfield metal detector.

It seems Mr. Met’s head is too big to fit through a metal detector, but a good size target for Secret Service snipers.

Quote of the day “I just want to be very deliberate and cautious about any major changes like that. It doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t make changes.” Commissioner Adam Silver on discussions to raise the NBA’s age limit from 19 to 20

Sports, Pages 22 on 04/19/2014

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