Drivers of the non-golf variety tore through turf at Grand Harbor Golf & Beach Club in Vero Beach, Fla., around 1 p.m. on Dec. 7. The fleeing SUV was rammed to a stop on the 16th fairway of the clubâs Harbor Course. Photos courtesy of Josh Breda
When the call came over the radio that a Toyota 4Runner was driving across one of the golf courses at Grand Harbor Golf & Beach Club in Vero Beach, Fla., with police vehicles in hot pursuit, Josh Bredaâs first thought was that the call was a prank.
His second thought was to jump in his cart and do what he could to put an end to it.
âIt was really amazing to hear that on the radio: âHey, thereâs a 4Runner on here being chased by police,ââ says Breda, a GCSAA Class A superintendent and 16-year association member. âA week or so before, there was a call from security that somebody was stabbed out here. I think it ended up being a prank call, so I had that in my mind a little bit. I was in disbelief.â
Regardless, Breda hopped in his cart and headed toward the ruckus â and arrived just in time to see an Indian River County Sheriffâs Office deputy perform a pursuit intervention technique, or âPIT maneuver,â to bring the pursuit to an abrupt halt, right in the middle of the Harbor Courseâs 16th fairway.
Watch: A Grand Harbor Golf & Beach Club employee filmed as an SUV sped across part of the golf course:
âI was right there when he took her out,â says Breda, who has been in his second stint at Grand Harbor Golf & Beach Club since April. âI was playing chicken with her. Thereâs some video of it, and you can hear me say, âOK, itâs time to play chicken.â I donât know what I would have done if we had actually gone head-to-head. I donât know how out of her mind she was. I did imagine a little tumble-roll out of the cart; get a new work cart out of it.â
Though the dramatic and relatively prolonged chase on Dec. 7 did cause an estimated $20,000 to the golf course, it could have been worse. Much worse.
Watch dash cam footage from the Indian River County Sheriffâs Office:
âI will say, she was definitely talented with that 4Runner, being able to get away from those guys for a long time,â Breda says. âThank goodness they got to her when they did. She probably would have run over some people for sure.â
WTVX reported that the driver, 60-year-old Jodi Ann Harvey, was involved in a near collision prior to crashing the course, which was what initiated the law enforcement pursuit.
Harvey allegedly plowed through Grand Harborâs unmanned gate with police in tow and headed toward the driving range. She ran over the flagstick on the 17th green and ran over the 16th green before looping back and heading toward the shop.
âThere were at least four or five cop cars,â Breda says. âThey didnât follow her on the greens, and she was only on those two greens, 16 and 17. Thatâs the extent of the holes she damaged. The worst of it is where she spun, where she peeled up some turf. On the greens, there are some tire marks. Itâs bruised, so that will take several weeks, but she didnât slam on the brakes or cut the wheel hard.â
The battered 17th green on the Harbor Course.
There was some damage to the Tifway 419 bermudagrass fairway.
âWeâll sod some of it, tamp it down and put some sand in there,â Breda says. âI put together a cost analysis and figure weâll be in over $20,000 on labor and material and fertilizer. Itâs hard to put a number on something like that. We have brand-new greens, and weâre going into season. To have her damage it like that, itâs discouraging.â
Itâs especially so given that the Pete Dye-designed Harbor Course just recently reopened after a $2 million renovation that included new TifEagle greens. The course shut down May 28 and reopened Oct. 29 after the ârestorationâ by Dye disciple Chris Lutzke.
The facelift had been the talk of the clubâs members until the dramatic police chase went viral. Even CNNâs Jeanne Moos did a feature on it.
âOh, goodness, yes, they (the members) are talking about it,â Breda says. âIt was on the West Palm (Fla.) news. Iâm hearing it was on the national news. Weâre just lucky we were still here and able to get it cleaned up when we did. We were about to leave for the day.â
The local TV station reported that Harvey told deputies she was under the influence of âblow.â
Andrew Hartsock is GCMâs managing editor.