strange booms scare players at july 12 john deere golf tourny

i was watching the golf game on CBS from 12-5 pm at an Illinois course when i hear the announcer say that a explosion boom was heard and felt, im not sure if there was a second boom or if they were replaying it, but i heard it, it shook the camera and startled the player, ive been looking for footage or a story on this and cannot find one. Im requesting anyone who recorded yesterdays golf game please isolate the booms and post them.

This made me think of the beach boom recently causing a woman to fly into the rocks. Officials still cannot figure out what caused it.

mystery boom at beach

a reply to: sanitizedinfo

methane releases? jumping jack flash theory - from all the fracking maybe?

I watched it too. An announcer later stated that a passing pontoon boat fired an air cannon and was known to locals for frequently doing so and could expect to be greeted at the doc by authorities.

originally posted by: howmuch4another
I watched it too. An announcer later stated that a passing pontoon boat fired an air cannon and was known to locals for frequently doing so and could expect to be greeted at the doc by authorities.

i heard that too, i thought it might be a strange boom because the announcer said he hadn't heard anything like it. that's why i wanted to review what i saw.

Are we referring to this?


I didn't see anything large enough on the boat to cause that kind of sound, but I know nothing about 'air cannons.' Doesn't seem to me like it would be something capable of knocking a lady over, let alone 10 feet from where she was standing without being right in front of her.

a reply to: Septimus

yes thats it. i guess i was wrong.

Could have been a firework, like a quarter stick of dynamite. Those go bang quite loud.

Someone in the comments mentioned it could very well have been an explosive.

There seems to be a bit of a shockwave accompanying the blast since the camera shook slightly. I don't know how stable their filming platforms are; maybe the cameraman just had a jolt. I know quarter to half stick 'blockbuster' fireworks can set off car alarms at around 500 feet up though.

In today's world, it's always such a good idea to do a thing that gives the police the idea of checking into your daily life.

I'm guessing it was some sort of explosive, being the weekend following the 4th.

Also of note, Zach's hometown is 90 miles from the course... Could be some guy he pissed off earlier in life.

Either way, that boater had some explaining to do to the authorities.

So could air cannons be a possible reason for alot of the strange booms reported around the world?

Because if that was an air cannon that was really loud and could be heard for miles.

a reply to: Septimus

I'm thinking the camera man moved it as he goes to pan the video recorder afterwards. I think his hands were on it so it moved when he jumped.

Watching that over, I don't see dust being kicked up or trees being knocked slightly.

I don't think it was powerful enough for that sort of shockwave

a reply to: sanitizedinfo
My first thought when I read the Caption was John Daly's pants exploded.

a reply to: sanitizedinfo

From what I understand of it, air cannon power, and therefore volume and reach, are dictated by a number of factors.

The pressure under which air is ejected from the barrel, the length and breadth of the barrel, and the atmospheric conditions all play in.

I had a cursory glance at some air cannons while messing about in google images once, and it seems that they are fairly simple to construct with items you could find in a junk store or a plumbers merchants. Furthermore, you can build them quite short barrelled, and as long as the pressure chamber is say three quarters the size of a two litre bottle of cola, you can get some significant boom for your buck, although the travel distance of the sound may be somewhat reduced.

They make excellent bird scarers, and now we know they ruin birdies too!

a reply to: sanitizedinfo

I live in the Quad Cities and police here think it was an M-80 from the passing boat.

Here's an article from the local newspaper:

Police say they are investigating a loud boom heard during the John Deere Classic's final hours Sunday afternoon.

Investigators are following up on reports of a loud “boom” or “explosion,” Silvis Police Chief Mark VanKlaveren said Monday.

VanKlaveren said those involved could face a disorderly conduct charge.

The noise was heard at 3:58 p.m. Police are talking to a man and a woman who were in a boat on the Rock River just off the 16th hole at TPC Deere Run in Silvis at the time, Rock Island Sheriff's Capt. Ron Erickson said.

A "puff of smoke" was seen around the boat and professional golfer Zach Johnson, who was on the 16th green, was heard yelling "Not cool" to the couple on the boat, Erickson said.

The deafening sound had caused Johnson to jump in the air in shock as he was preparing to putt for a birdie on the hole. After collecting himself, Johnson returned to his putt but missed.

"I don't know if it was a backfire from a boat or firecracker or what," he said after his round. "It sounded like a gunshot obviously."

Security at the event said the bang was from an M-80 firecracker fired off the boat, adding another rocket was fired off within five minutes.

Erickson said investigators also suspect the noise came from an M-80 firecracker blast. He added that he could almost make out the numbers on the boat from the live video coverage of the John Deere Classic.

link

a reply to: N3k9Ni

Thats the first thing that came to mind for me. We used to get M70 and M80s constantly through the 80s and early 90s as well as build our own bombs with my step dads reloading supplies. Anything blown up over the water will be extremely loud since it will reflect the sound off the surface of the water and the sound will carry much further than it would otherwise.

originally posted by: ugmold
a reply to: sanitizedinfo
My first thought when I read the Caption was John Daly's pants exploded.

Good grief, Draco Malfoy has aged badly! And his attempt to pass as a Muggle isn't working.