Golf: PGA Tour pro terrified by snake prank

Smylie by name. Not so smiling by nature.

PGA Tour professional Smylie Kaufman didn’t quite live up to his name when he was pranked by his playing partners in the pro-am for the Shriners Hospital for Children Open.

Kaufman, who claimed his only victory on Tour last year, had just teed off on the 17th hole when he walked over to his bag and received a nasty surprise.

Brushing his hand over the top of the clubs, the terrified 25-year-old quickly shoved the bag away after nearly touching what he thought was a stray snake.

But the burst of laughter from his group signalled the deadly serpent was nothing more than a child’s toy.

The American golfer did see the funny side of the joke – once his heart had stopped racing a million miles an hour – but it hardly helped his preparation for the tournament proper.

Kaufman struggled over the four rounds finishing down the leaderboard in 72nd position, a massive 20 shots off the pace of winner Australian Rod Pampling.