Golfer Gerring Suffers Burns in Hospitality Tent Accident

NASHVILLE, Tenn. —  Golfer Cathy Gerring was burned Saturday when a flame from an alcohol burner shot across a hospitality buffet table as she waited in line, officials of the Sara Lee Classic said.

Gerring, who had just finished second-round play in the LPGA tournament, was taken by helicopter to the burn unit at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, tournament director Clyde Russell Jr. said.

A spokeswoman said Gerring was in stable condition in the burns intensive care unit, having suffered first- and second-degree burns on her face and hands.

The accident occurred when a chef poured more alcohol into a burner unit that had gone out, said Mike Brulatour, a representative of Service America Corp., which was in charge of the tournament’s corporate hospitality tent.

Brulatour said a draft, possibly caused by an open window in the tent, blew the flame across the buffet table. An unidentified man and a chef also were burned. Their injuries were not disclosed.

Gerring, in her eighth year on the LPGA Tour, is a resident of Dublin, Ohio.