Golfer Billy Horschel shoos off gator with golf club during PGA match

There are birdies and eagles in the world of golf, but how many shots under par is a gator?

Billy Horschel was playing in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, at the PGA National’s Champion course when a gator sauntered onto the green, Golf.com reported.

Instead of being freaked out by the encounter, Horschel, who is a Florida Gator himself, grabbed a 60-degree wedge and poked the gator on the shoulder, directing it back into the water.

A video of the encounter was shared on social media by PGATOUR.com writer Paul Hodowanic and then shared by outlets such as ESPN’s SportsCenter.

Horschel was playing in the first round of the Cognizant Classic, Fox News reported.

“Yeah, we were on No. 6 green and I just putted out, went to the left side of the green there. Right about to walk to 7 I saw the gator coming across,” Horschel said, according to Golf.com. “The cop who was working with us walked over there and tried to shoo him, but he didn’t have anything to touch him and he was trying to get as close as he could.”

“It was either someone was going to have to go up to No. 8 and grab a rake or I was 30 yards away, 25 yards away, and I just grabbed a club and went over there and pushed him away,” he continued.

Horschel is a Florida native, growing up in Grant, near Palm Beach, so gators are not a huge surprise.

“Yeah, I’m not afraid of gators. Listen, as I tell most people, I said, they’re more afraid of you,” Horschel said. “The majority of the time they’re only going to come after you during mating season where they’re a little aggressive and then if you’re around their nest when they’ve got some eggs.”

“The majority of the time, they’re fine. I grew up with my dad grabbing their tail when they’re on the side of the bank and shooing them back in the water. I never touched a tail with my hand but I’ve done it with a club. Not that big of a deal.”

He was tied at 16th with a 5-under 66 by the end of Thursday, NBC News reported.

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