Trevor Martin Maintains €1.2 Million Golf Club Injury Claim
A retired brewery manager seeking €1.2 million in damages for a severe spinal injury sustained at a County Clare golf venue faced pointed questioning in the High Court regarding his mobility and why he ventured out of bounds to retrieve lost balls. Trevor Martin, 69, of Corofin, Tuam, Co Galway, has sued three trustees of Kilkee Golf Club following an incident on August 2nd, 2014, The Irish Times reported.
Martin testified that he hit two golf shots out of bounds into neighboring property. When he climbed the embankment to return to the course, he fell backward onto a dyke, striking his head. He lost consciousness, required an emergency airlift to a hospital, and subsequent MRI scans confirmed a traumatic spinal cord injury.
High Court Scrutiny Over Movements and Path Choice
During the proceedings, defense barristers Edward Walsh and Paul O’Neill—instructed by Harrison O’Dowd solicitors—played private investigator footage and presented photographs showing Martin in various public situations. Martin disputed the suggestion that the surveillance footage demonstrated unrestricted and mostly unassisted movement.
When Judge Tony O’Connor asked why an experienced golfer felt compelled to cross a boundary line to retrieve golf balls, Martin stated that he did not view the action as dangerous. He added that the layout of the course made it seem as though the club was directing players along that specific path. Asked why he did not select an alternative route given the lack of footholds, Martin maintained that his golf shoes provided good spikes and grip. Describing the incline to the judge, Martin said it measured roughly three feet and four inches high, adding, “A run, skip and jump and you are over it.”
Martin confirmed he is pressing forward with the full €1.2 million valuation, which incorporates substantial future care costs determined by his expert witnesses. He also noted that he specifically instructed his solicitor not to name the neighboring farmer in the litigation, asking why he would prosecute an innocent man despite falling backward into that field.
The legal arguments trace back to evolving pleadings. In his initial 2017 personal injury summons, Martin alleged he tripped and fell over an unprotected drop near the seventh fairway. By his amended 2026 summons, the narrative shifted to hitting two balls out of bounds and falling backward while climbing the embankment.
An engineer retained by Martin’s legal team testified that an inspection of the seventh green revealed a layout that was a “nightmare situation for golfers and not fair.”
The golf club denies all allegations of negligence, which included claims that operators failed to construct proper barriers between adjoining properties or post adequate warning signs. The case before the High Court continues.