A DRIVER has described her shock when a golf ball smashed through her car window while she was travelling through Bransford.

Elaine Archer was travelling along the A4103 towards Worcester when the ball hit the driver's side window.

The ball, which came from the direction of The Bank House Hotel Golf and Country Club, shattered the window and covered Mrs Archer in broken glass.

"It was terrifying," she said. "I was lucky it didn't hit me on the head.

"I didn't know the road particularly well and luckily I wasn't going very fast, but the golf ball just came out of nowhere. Two people had to stop to see if I was all right."

After the incident, which happened on Saturday, March 26, Mrs Archer, of Badsey, near Evesham, spoke to residents in nearby Chapel Lane and was told of other near-misses, smashed windows and broken car windscreens.

Kevin and Jenny Garrington, whose house faces the golf club, have had on-going problems with balls smashing roof tiles. In 2003, Mrs Garrington's mother narrowly avoided being hit by a golf ball in the garden.

"If you're in the front garden mowing the lawn, there's a good chance of being hit by a golf ball," said Mr Garrington.

Joe Farr, manager of The Bank House Hotel Golf and Country Club, said: "We've had a golf club here for 15 years and the number of balls that have gone astray has been quite small.

"However, with modern equipment for golfers, people are hitting balls further. It's all right as long as they are hitting a good shot but, if it's a bad one, that's when the trouble starts."

To counter the problem, contractors are currently building an embankment between the golf course and Chapel Lane.

Planting is also taking place along a public footpath that runs through the course and on both sides of the A4103.

This is intended to act as a barrier.