iStockphoto / Jerry Ballard
Randy Johnson nailing a bird from the pitcher’s mound is one of the most iconic moments in his legendary career and one golfer on a driving range appears to have tried to recreate the iconic exploding bird moment.
In a video that’s gone viral on social media (Reddit, TikTok, and Instagram), a golfer was filming himself on the range as he struck a ball and a fraction of a second later he struck a bird and it went poof just when The Big Unit.
Golfer Hits Bird Like Randy Johnson
Not to glorify the bird’s demise or anything like that, but it is remarkable how the bird immediately banks right and goes down with its wings still out like a WWII fighter jet that just got clipped. I could swear I’ve seen that same ‘mayday’ trajectory in countless war movies.
And this is entirely anecdotal, but I’m a bit of a head case on the range. If I’m striking the ball well on the range I’m usually certain that I’ll play 5+ strokes above my handicap on the course. And if I’m struggling on the range there’s always a great chance I ‘figure my swing out’ by the 4th or 5th hole and end up turning in a great scorecard for my index. But I cannot imagine the mental tailspin this would send me to if I was warming up before playing a round.
Now, given that the golfer was filming himself on the range it seems likely he was practicing and not playing afterward but you never know.
Sadly, on Reddit the golfer wrote that they believe the bird died instantly, adding that the bird didn’t move at all once it hit the ground.
Now, let’s compare it to Randy Johnson’s infamous bird incident:
What are the odds of either happening? Is there even a way to calculate how rare this is?