Golfers battle courses, conditions Rockland doctor OK after bout of heat exhaustion

BANGOR -Dr. Emery Howard of Rockland suffered a case of heat exhaustion during Friday’s sweltering opening round of the 37th R.H. Foster Energy/Mobil Paul Bunyan Amateur Golf Tournament, serious enough for paramedics to be called, but he was able to laugh about it afterward.

“The paramedics said, ‘You can finish if you want, but we don’t advise it,'” said Howard.

Howard did return to the course and finished his round. He came in with an 87, even grumbling good-naturedly about getting down in three from the fringe on 18 and making only a par 5.

“I’ve never done anything like that before in my life,” said the 67-year-old pediatrician of his exhaustion episode.

Howard, playing in Division B at Bangor Municipal Golf Course, knew the heat was getting to him beginning on the fourth hole.

He played on, but he had to be driven in from the 15th tee after reaching the point when he could no longer continue.

“At the 14th tee, I laid under a tree,” said Howard. “I knew I was in big trouble.”

Still, he tried to play on.

“My partners helped me up,” said Howard. “My tee shot I slammed right into the trees. It was in a place where I could hit it out, but I couldn’t even see straight. I ended up making nine there.”

That was as far as he could get, though.

The ranger, who had been keeping tabs on Howard since the fourth hole, brought him in to the pro shop.

“He was fully alert,” said pro Brian Enman. “He knew what was going on.”

Howard wanted a ride to the hospital, but Enman called the paramedics instead.

“They gave me about three liters of fluid [intravenously],” Howard said. “My pulse was [up to] 130, and my blood pressure had dropped to 68 over 30.”

He stayed in a back room and the lounge for about an hour. When he finally had to make a trip to the bathroom, the paramedics said he was OK.

“He wanted to go back out, and I said, ‘You’re not walking,'” Enman said.

Enman put him in a cart and set Howard up with another group so he could finish.

Howard does not plan to let the heat get to him again for today’s and Sunday’s rounds.

“I’m going to drink a lot of fluids [Friday night],” said Howard, laughing.