Gator attack victim: 'For seven minutes, I thought I was history'

TAMPA – Dwight Monreal has been nudged and nipped by alligators many times.

But he said yesterday’s attack at Hole 13 of the Tampa Palms Golf and Country Club was more vicious than anything he’s ever encountered in his 14-year career as a professional golf ball diver.

“He just out and out attacked me. He tried to death roll me,” Monreal said. “For seven minutes, I thought I was history.”

Monreal said he had been scooping golf balls out of the murky water for about 25 minutes when a large gator attacked from behind.

The 62-year-old Port St. Lucie resident fought back. He rolled with the alligator and jabbed his thumb into its eye.

The gator became disoriented and let go. Monreal shouted for help. Nearby golfers rushed to his aid.

He was taken to St. Joseph's Hospital, where he was treated for a dislocated left shoulder and puncture wounds to his left arm.

On Saturday night, officials said they had trapped the 7- to 8-foot alligator that attacked Monreal.

But Monreal said trappers have yet to find his real attacker.

“They got the wrong one. Absolutely,” he said. “This one was much bigger and extremely aggressive. And now he’s got a bad eye socket.”

Speaking Sunday from his Port St. Lucie home, where he lives with his wife and three sons, Monreal said he was worried about the five weeks of rehabilitation he would need.

“I’m their sole provider,” he said. “It’s going to be real tough for the next five to six weeks.”

State-licensed trapper Julie Harter captured a gator at the country club at 8 p.m. Saturday, less than four hours after the attack. The gator will be destroyed.

Gary Morse, spokesman for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, said the gator's hide and meat will be sold, and proceeds will continue to fund the commission's Nuissance Alligator Program.

Morse said attacks involving golf-ball diving are not uncommon. The scenario is even mentioned in the commission's nuisance alligator fact sheet. When a swimmer accidentally bumps into a gator, the reptile may bite in defense.

"It’s something you might expect to happen with a job like retrieving golf balls from a pond in alligator country," Morse said. "It's a hazardous vocation."

But once he recovers, Monreal said he plans to return to work – with a knife.

“It’s great money, but it comes with serious risks,” he said.

To learn more about alligator safety, click here.

-- Catherine E. Shoichet and Alexandra Zayas, Times staff writers