holes

HOLIDAYMAKERS are being warned not to do one common activity at the beach.

Beach days are always fun, especially in the summer with the family – but the public are being warned to never dig a large hole in the sand in one part of the UK.

This is because a large hole can collapse in on itself and could pose the risk of trapping someone, including kids and pets.

The fresh warning comes from the coastguard at Cleethorpes, a popular seaside town destination with a four-mile beach, traditional pier and family-friendly activities, making it the ideal day out.

According to the BBC, Cleethorpes Coastguard deputy station manager Shaun Lee said: “It’s like an avalanche effect, where the sand just keeps collapsing and collapsing, and then people just get completely buried in it.

He explained that when a hole is dug with steep sides, the wet sand will dry out and make it looser and as a result, more prone to collapsing.

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He added: “We don’t want to be the fun police – just be aware of what you are doing if you are digging holes.”

Also in Lincolnshire, last year coastguards filled a hole in Sandilands Beach that was nearly two metres deep.

At the time, the coastguards said they filled the hole “for safety reasons”.

Last June, the coastguard filled a hole on Weymouth Beach as well, which was around 1.5metres deep.

It took the coastguard three people and 30 minutes to fill.

Senior Coastal Operations Officer Allan Norman, at HM Coastguard, said: “Buckets and spades are a lot of fun – but most of us wouldn’t dream of digging a 5ft deep hole at a park where youngsters are running about and people walk in the evening.

“It’s the same at busy beaches: deep holes can be hard to spot in the sand and pose the risk of someone falling in and being injured, particularly little children and older people.

“There’s also the danger of the sand collapsing on top of you, causing injury and suffocation.

“These incidents require whole teams of rescuers.

“We’d just ask people to stay aware of who else is on the beach and the potential risks of digging too deep.”

Even though beachgoers are warned against creating large holes at the beach, it doesn’t mean you can’t dig them at all.

Allan advises to just not dig it deeper than waist height and to avoid digging tunnels, which are even more likely to collapse.

He added that you should fill the hole in before you leave the beach.

If you do happen to be caught in a situation where you get stuck in a large hole on the beach, GOV.UK recommends creating a circle of people around the hole, who dig with their hands to create an outer circle.

Then create another circle of people behind that circle, but they will be removing the sand dug from the first circle.

By creating multiple circles, it will make the original hole bigger and more shallow and as a result, it will be less likely to collapse.

In other beach news, here are our 26 must-visit UK beaches for 2026 – including tropical-feel spots and family-friendly finds.

Plus, here’s the UK’s warmest beach that’s also home to two of the ‘most idyllic holiday homes’ and you can stay from just £30pp a night.

It was a moment playing golf that anyone and everyone looks forward to celebrating.

Jake Norr, a junior at Palisades High, made a hole in one earlier this week at Woodley Lakes Golf Course. It was part of a nine-hole round that left him six-under-par and stamped himself as the favorite to win the City Section individual title later this spring.

He then aced the fifth hole at Harding Golf Course on Thursday.

“I think he has a good chance,” Palisades coach Dave Suarez said of Norr winning the individual City title.

Norr used a 9-iron for his hole in one on the 159-yard hole at Woodley Lakes.

“It was the first of many to come,” Suarez said on Wednesday.

Then came Norr’s second hole in one on Thursday, making Suarez’s prediction pretty impressive.

“I knew he had it in him,” Suarez said.

Norr has been part of Palisades’ last two teams to win City titles.

“He’s a really hard worker,’ Suarez said.

This is a daily look at the positive happenings in high school sports. To submit any news, please email eric.sondheimer@latimes.com.

AUGUSTA, Ga. — Among the many rules at Augusta National — no cell phones, no booing, no lying in the grass — patrons are not allowed to run.

Somebody tell Rory McIlroy.

The defending Masters champion was sprinting away from the field Friday, building a six-shot lead heading into the weekend and putting himself in prime position to become the first repeat winner since Tiger Woods in 2002.

McIlroy atoned for two bogeys with nine birdies, shooting a seven-under-par 65 to improve on his stellar 67 in the opening round.

At 12 under, he now holds the largest 36-hole lead in Masters history.

“When I was standing on the 12th tee, I didn’t imagine that I would be six ahead going into the weekend,” said McIlroy, who birdied six of the final seven holes despite hitting into the trees on holes 13, 15 and 17.

“I’ve always had the ability to go on these runs … but it’s staying aggressive. My little mantra today was keep swinging, and keep swinging hard at it.”

And he completed that masterpiece in the afternoon, when the legendary course was even firmer and more slippery than it was in the morning. The warm weather and cloudless skies set the stage for a test of surgical precision in the final two rounds.

“These greens are going to be concrete,” said Wyndham Clark, who followed an even-par round with a four-under 68. “Obviously getting really fast without the wind, so it’s going to really matter hitting it in the fairway and the angles, and being patient.”

Rory McIlroy walks across Nelson Bridge with his caddy during the second round at the Masters.

(Eric Gay / Associated Press)

Fifty-four competitors from 15 different countries made the cut from a starting field of 91.

Of his jaw-dropping finishing scramble, McIlroy said: “The only way I can describe it is everything that you see or any situation that you come across, you can find a positive in it. And then you see birdies and you can see ways to make birdies. Hit it in the trees at 13, fine, I can make a birdie doing it this way. Hit it in the trees at 15, same thing.”

Whereas McIlroy created separation, Tyrrell Hatton made a case for inclusion. He was two over after Thursday but played himself back into contention with a 66 on Friday, hitting all 18 greens in regulation and becoming just the third player in 30 years to do that at the Masters. He is tied for seventh with Clark.

Patrick Reed, who shot a 69 in the first round, matched that in the second to claim a share of second place with Sam Burns.

Reed, who left for LIV Golf but announced in January he plans to return to the PGA Tour, played golf locally at Augusta State University and won this tournament in 2018. He said that Masters experience helps in a big way now.

Of winning a green jacket, he said, “Until you do, you always have that little voice of doubt in the back of your mind.”

Justin Rose, who lost to McIlroy in a sudden-death playoff last year, is in a three-way tie for fourth with Shane Lowry and Tommy Fleetwood.

Patrick Reed hits off the 18th tee during the second round of the Masters on Friday.

(Jared C. Tilton / Getty Images)

Asked if his near-miss in 2025 serves as extra motivation this year, Rose said: “Not really, if I’m honest. I don’t really need to try any harder, know what I mean? Trying harder ain’t going to help me.”

It was a rough day for Scottie Scheffler, ranked No. 1 in the world, as his 74 put him 12 shots back of McIlroy.

Bryson DeChambeau was on the bubble all day before a triple-bogey seven on the 18th hole. He missed the cut six over.

Two-time Masters winner Bubba Watson missed the cut, as did 66-year-old Fred Couples, who was playing well Thursday until taking a quadruple-bogey nine on the 15th hole.

McIlroy played with 18-year-old amateur Mason Howell, who was sufficiently impressed as the defending champion birdied each of the final four holes.

“You’ve got to stay in your own lane, but it’s hard not to watch that,” Howell said. “That chip-in on 17 was unreal. That was one of the coolest things I’ve seen in sports, and I got to witness it in person, so that was awesome.”

The youngster had the galleries chanting his name as he tried to fulfill a vow made 12 months ago – to clear the water with his tee-shot on the final ninth hole.

A year older, bigger and stronger – and armed with a bespoke club – he had made it a mission to conquer what had turned into a personal challenge.

“When I go on to the range I just think about this every single day,” Frankie said in one of countless television interviews during the round.

Described as a “chatterbox” by his dad, Frankie showed he is a chip off the old block – talking confidently in front of the camera, demonstrating a steeliness to succeed and possessing a stylish swing of the club.

Anticipation built on the course as the Fleetwood family, again alongside good friends the McIlroys and Lowrys, played their way round to the ninth tee.

Young Frankie was wide right with his first attempt and, after the Augusta patrons sang for him to get another chance, came closer with a second but it still ended up wet.

He walked off with the consoling arm of Shane Lowry’s daughter Iris – who also went close to hitting the putting surface – round his shoulders.

“I think more than anything the pressure is on me to keep making the Masters until he reaches the green on the ninth,” said father Tommy, who continues his quest this week for a first major title following several top-five finishes.

Fleetwood tuned up his short game with a hole-in-one which made the patrons roar, with American trio Justin Thomas, Wyndham Clark and Keegan Bradley also carding aces to dial up the entertainment factor.

Bradley, who was the US captain in their Ryder Cup defeat by Europe last year, is first player in the history of the 66-year competition to land holes-in-one in consecutive years.

The noise in the galleries is likely to be matched this week as the sporting drama intensifies, but the chaos inside the ropes – toddlers sliding down bunkers and babies crawling across putting surfaces – will make way for the cordiality of the main event.

Father-of-five Jason Day jokingly described the occasion as “a circus”, with Clark adding: “As a man with no kids I’ll say it’s great birth control but it’s a lot of fun.”

Celebrity stardust came in the shape of comedian Kevin Hart, who caddied for two-time major champion Bryson DeChambeau, and former NFL star Jason Kelce in a roving reporter role on the course.

Their presence came hours after Augusta chairman Fred Ridley discussed the ongoing battle for the Masters to find the balance “between respecting tradition and innovating”.

On this evidence, the Par 3 Contest is treading the line nicely as the Masters looks to ensure it – and golf – remains relevant for generations to come.