THAILAND (UPI) - Recent statistics show that golf driving ranges and hazards provide good cover for a rapidly-growing problem known as golf ball poaching.
Golfers who have long-suspected that something suspicious happened to their ball after searching in vain for it can now feel some amount of vindication. But the sport's dirty little secret remains shrouded in mystery.
"I walked up on a golf ball poacher one time," said former Muay Thai world kickboxing champion Coban 'The Cruncher' Lookchaomaesaitong. "The last memory I have is how he grabbed my shiny shorts and gave me a wedgie that really, really hurt!" he sobbed embarrassingly.
This practice of poaching golf balls would not be so lucrative, except for what lies inside their shiny pock-marked exterior. Poached golf balls often end up having their internals removed to be used in the massive rubber band (or elastic) industry.