PGA Golf Club Staff Saved a Man Having Heart Attack

John Van Teeckelenburgh woke up feeling ill on Friday morning but with his wife out of town for the day, Van Teeckelenburgh decided that he would take advantage of the nice day and hit some golf balls.

He headed for the PGA Learning Center in St. Lucie, got some balls and wend down to the driving range. But once he got there, he still wasn’t feeling well, so he returned to the clubhouse to get a refund after not hitting a single ball.

Once Van Teeckelenburgh reached the clubhouse, however, he passed out and fell to the ground. Seeing he was in distress, man behind the counter and another club professional rushed to help him and radioed two former public service officers, John Tuller and Bob Morin, to help the situation. The two men used their experience to administer CPR and utilize a defibrillator until paramedics arrived.

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Fortunately for Van Teeckelenburgh, the paramedics arrived and were able to stabilize him before any serious complications set in. He was then taken to the hospital and released from care a few days later.

According to the paramedics that helped save Van Teeckelenburgh’s life, if it wasn’t for the quick action of Tuller and Morin, Van Teeckelenburgh may not have survived.

For their efforts, the St. Lucie County Fire Department honored both Tuller and Morin with the Citizens Hero Award. The ceremony took place in the fire district building and was an emotional ceremony with Van Teeckelenburgh in attendance. While Van Teeckelenburgh was very emotional thanking the men for their quick actions, there were also some jokes about when he would cash in his rain check from that morning.

We’re happy to report that Van Teeckelenburgh is doing well and recovering from the ordeal and we hope that he will be able to return to the course soon to cash in on that rain check.