3 minimum reading13,264 views and 826 shares Published on July 2, 2020
He is like Arnold Palmer’s son of love and the Easter Bunny has lived secretly in Palmyra for the past two years.
If not, who left the golf balls on the streets, plots and meadows of the city?
“I have no idea. Honestly, it was an ongoing thing,” said Scott Rhine on Wednesday. “It’s crazy.”
The Rhine is an executive at Klick Lewis, a new and used car dealership on East Main Street. He said golf balls started appearing on the parking lot and surrounding streets 18-24 months ago – and he never stopped.
“There was no damage,” he said. “It’s not a problem, it’s not a vandalism problem. They appear randomly.”
The balls appear overnight and are there when the employees arrive in the morning, Reno explained.
Wednesday morning there were 31 balls scattered around the dealer, he said. The day before, there were 59.
Some mornings there are only three or four balls to find, Reno said. The maximum he found in one day was 65.
“It became a joke,” he said. “Every morning we go for a walk to find them.”
So far, nothing has been captured by the dealer’s surveillance cameras that show who is putting them there, Reno said. He noted that there are no golf courses or driving ranges nearby.
It went on long enough that Reno posted a message about it on a Palmyra Facebook group about a month ago, he said.
“We have received many responses,” he said. “It’s only on Palmyra. It is a phenomenon. “
The balls also went up in the surrounding areas, including Cherry, Maple, Forge and Prince Street, Ridge Road, West Main Street and Horseshoe Pike, Reno said.
Residents of the area hurried forward with questions about the problem, theories about the origins of the balls or stories of their encounters with golf balls.
“We get golf balls in our backyard across the city on Lingle Avenue,” wrote Megan Escobar. “It’s so strange!”
“I live in West Cherry down near the cemetery,” said Nichole Melissa. “They are always in our courtyard! Where they come from?!?!”
“Across the city,” agreed Tracy Crosson. “Every time we go for a walk, my dog comes home with 2 in his mouth.”
“WTH is this?!?” asked Keith Reh, who claimed that the phenomenon could be explained “once or twice … maybe a group of bored kids; this is becoming worrying considering there are houses right behind the dealership … vandalism could be next . “
“But where do you get so many golf balls for playing this joke?” Arissa Farr May wondered.
“Okay, I’m camping,” Shane Sutherly promised. “The mystery has to be solved.”
It’s also a mystery in municipal offices.
“I don’t know anything about it,” Palmyra District Director Roger E. Powl said Thursday. “It’s the first time I’ve heard of it.”
Powl said he asked the police, and “they are aware of it … but we have never had official reports. No damage or anything like that has ever been reported. We really are as dark as everyone else.”
He said anyone who sees or suspects something about the mysterious golf balls should call the police “and maybe they can understand what’s going on there.”
Reno said he never reported the matter to the police because no crime was committed.
“No car has ever been damaged. No windows, no doors, nothing, “he said.” It’s as if they just appeared. “
In fact, he said, if the phenomenon had stopped, “I would be angry. I get free golf balls. “
Thousands, in fact. Reno said the dealership employees pick them up in a large box and put them into practice, primarily for practice, he said, because they aren’t always in the best shape. But sometimes, he observed, they end up on links.
“I am an avid golfer. My colleagues are also passionate about golf, “said Reno.” And some of them are the Titleist Pro V1 balls, which are the cream of the crop. Top of the line. “
There is no consistency in the type of ball, however. Some, he said, have “Palmyra Cougars” stamped on them.
Unfortunately, he added, “many of them are rubbish. They were run over by cars, some were run over. They get stuck in the Prince Street drains. “
Eventually, the Rhine would like to see the mystery solved one day.
“Everyone is at that point,” he said. “It’s not harmful at all, as far as business is concerned, we don’t really care. But we would like to know where they come from. “
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This article has been updated with commentary from the Palmyra Borough.
