Interesting Story in the Orlando Sentinel (Arjun Atwall article)

[rmorgent5]

Pro golfer may be charged in fatality

 

Erika Hobbs | Sentinel Staff Writer

Posted March 11, 2007

 

 

 

 

 

 

One man was killed and a professional golfer could face charges after they crashed their high-priced sports cars in a fast-paced street race along a winding road near Windermere Saturday evening, authorities said.

 

John Noah Park, 48, died after his 2006 Mercedes-Benz coupe spun out of control going around a curve on County Road 535 (Winter Garden-Vineland Road) and crashed into a tree with such force that the car's axle was flung into the upper branches.

 

Arjun Atwal, a Windermere member of the PGA Tour, raced Park in his 2006 BMW sedan, said Trooper Kim Miller, a Florida Highway Patrol spokeswoman. He, too, lost control at the bend, but he spun out on the shoulder. Atwal, 33, was not injured.

 

The crash was still under investigation Saturday night, but Atwal could face criminal charges, Miller said.

 

"What they were doing, whether or not one was mad -- we don't know yet," Miller said. "They were both old enough to know better."

 

But troopers had "very good" witnesses who said the two were "engaged with each other." The two cars, however, never touched.

 

Park and Atwal are not the typical faces of street racing, the thrill of 20-somethings in low riders and souped-up sports cars.

 

But the fact that the men had the audacity to speed at roughly 100 mph along a road that winds through exclusive neighborhoods at 5:35 p.m. shows how pervasive the illegal -- and dangerous -- folly is, she said.

 

"Everyone does it," Miller said. "This just shows how much of a problem we've got."

 

The stretch of C.R. 535 where Park died is a dark, open road, infamous for speeders, Miller said. She said, however, that there have been no recent complaints of racing.

 

Atwal's wife, Ritika, answered a phone call late Saturday night but referred callers to her husband, who she said was in the shower. He did not return calls.

 

Attempts to reach Park's relatives early today were unsuccessful.

 

Atwal, who is not scheduled to play in this week's Arnold Palmer Invitational in Orlando, is ranked 322nd on the PGA Tour money list this year with $25,346 in 2007 earnings. He has earned just more than $2 million in his 12-year career on the tour, not counting sponsorships.

 

He fell out of the top 125 in 2005, posting one top-10 finish in the 33 events he entered that year.

 

Born in Asansol, India, Atwal is the first native of India to qualify for the PGA Tour.

 

Josh Robbins of the Sentinel staff contributed to this report. Erika Hobbs can be reached at [email protected] or 407-420-6226.

[samm980]

If it's true they both go down as big league dumbasses.

[theinsider]

A tough lesson to learn for everyone.

 

Having driven that road many times, I cannot believe anybody was doing 100 MPH on it and thought they could get away with it.

 

A preventable tragedy...

[samm980]

I can go ahead and scratch him off the list of players I want to see do well.

[mat562]

Let's wait and see what the outcome is.

 

As a police officer for 7 years, working largely in road traffic, I can say that my experience is that things aren't always as they first appear in cases like this.

 

It also amazes me to see/hear a police officer effectively making a judgement on the cause of the collision and blameworthiness of one of the drivers possibly involved before any investigation has been finalised or any court proceedings instigated. A very, very dubious thing to do in my opinion, and wide open to potential criticism.

 

I agree If any element of blame is upheld in Atwal's case, then he should face the consequences as would anyone else. However, there is no finding of guilt yet, so let's not crucify him just yet.

[CSR]

They just said on NBC that Arjun claims the driver was trying to pass him and going way to fast. Arjun just sped up to get out of his way.

Hopefully Arjun isn't that big of a dumbWord not allowed to have been racing.

[aue21]

Give it a chance to see what happens.........As one that has personally played with Arjun, I would hope there is more to the story........

[theinsider]

This just in from Atwal's agent...via the PGA Tour comunications dept.

 

Orlando, FL - March 11, 2007 - Robert Kreusler, President/CEO of Blue Giraffe Sports, the player management company that represents Arjun Atwal, has issued the following statement on behalf of Arjun and his family:

 

"Arjun, his wife Sona, and the remainder of his family extend their deepest condolences to the family of Mr. John N. Park. Even though Arjun and his family did not know Mr. Park, they cannot fathom the unimaginable pain that his family must be going through. Their constant thoughts and prayers are with the Park family at this time.

 

Arjun would very much like to address the media about the circumstances of this accident, but obviously cannot do so at this time because of the investigation being conducted by the Florida Highway Patrol. We ask that members of the press and the public do not rush to make a judgement about what occurred here, because once all of the facts have been gathered and the investigation completed, it will be abundantly clear that this was simply a horrible accident and tragedy, with no one at fault.

[CUTiger]

i dont see why he should be charged...they both chose to race. he SHOULD consider himslef very lucky.

[samm980]

i dont see why he should be charged...they both chose to race. he SHOULD consider himslef very lucky.

 

 

? If he was racing it's a crime.

[ckay]

i dont see why he should be charged...they both chose to race. he SHOULD consider himslef very lucky.

Would you feel the same way if he wasn't a tour player but just a regular joe in your town? Hard to have sympathy for somebody that chooses to be reckless on public roads.

[freddiec]

Anybody who races like that uses really really bad judgement. A school buddy of mine did the same exact thing in 1987 2 weeks after HS Grad. in a late 60s Mustang and was killed. They never found the other guy who was driving a new Vette. I have no tolerance for that, especially on a bad road.

[samm980]

Maybe he did nothing wrong and is telling the truth but if he was racing then they should throw his a** in prison.

[augiep38]

I couldn't care less if the guy was racing. If they both chose to race and one died, that is his problem. No one forced that guy to race. There are consequences to your actions and no amount of legislation will protect all.

 

I would feel the same way if it was a regular Joe Blow involved. The US population is becoming a bunch of pansies thinking that everyone can be saved and protected.

[RagingAardvark]

I'm not set on if he should be charged with anything concerning the guy's death, but if he was racing he sure as heck should be charged for it. I lived on a quiet road when I was growing up and there would be jerks doing well over 70+mph on it..real safe given that some of us would ride bikes on it. (cool)