MIAMI - A man who lived on a public golf course for 40 years lost his home after some golfers complained to the course manager, saying his presence didn't look good and that he scared them.
But other golfers said Kenny Bethel, 55, is harmless and that he should have been allowed to stay.
Bethel first came to the Palmetto Golf Course as a teenage runaway in 1963. He collected and resold stray golf balls, used the showers and toilets at night, and slept in a sheltered area.
"This course became my job and, later, my home," he said. "What have I done to deserve this?"
For the last nine years, he had been joined by his wife Francis, 43.
Bethel now gets chased away by the staff when he tries to collect balls. And they lock the restrooms at night.
"It's a huge dilemma," said Carlos McKeon, manager of golf operations for Miami-Dade. "We used to cast a benign eye on Kenny. But when a few golfers complained that he's trespassing and it's against the law, we had to get him off."
Aimee Artiles, a spokeswoman for Miami-Dade County, said complaints about Bethel's presence picked up in recent months, particularly from female golfers, who said they were nervous about using the restrooms with him near.
"This is a golf course, it's not a public housing project," she said. "It's at a point now where we need to set a precedent for the future."
Bethel turned down a job in course maintenance because he wanted to be self-employed, McKeon said. Artiles said he has also turned down county offers to link him to homeless assistance programs.
Golfers who had become accustomed to seeing Bethel were surprised by his banishment.
"It seems a shame that someone who is an institution on the course can't be grandfathered in," golfer Jim Adamson said.
Mario Deif agreed. "He's a nice guy. You have to admire someone who has debunked modern life and lives off the land."
Bethel and his wife have relocated to a nearby bridge.
