Builder blinded and left claiming Universal Credit after being hit in face by golf ball during charity match
A GOLFER was blinded in one eye when another player’s wild shot sent a ball smashing into his face.
Leigh Powell, 44, was knocked out cold by the shot from just 20 yards away — and others on the course feared he was dead.
His right eye was shattered from the lens to the retina and it took five months for the swelling to go down before doctors could operate.
But the builder was told his vision in the eye could not be restored.
He said: “It hit me plumb in the eye. When I came round, there was blood everywhere. I could feel a huge pressure in my eye, I knew it was shattered.”
The incident happened on the tenth hole during a charity day at Leigh’s local course in Lydbrook, Gloucs, in June last year.
He said he had been unable to find any similar cases.
He has been unable to work since and during months of treatment has lost £32,000 in earnings.
“It’s really hard,” Leigh went on. “I’m having to sell my home because of this.
“I get £360 a month in universal credit which just doesn’t cover my expenses.
“I feel let down: I’ve always paid my taxes and I feel the system should support you at times like this.
“It’s really tough not working, having nothing to do. It destroys your mental health.”