Karl Stefanovic saw his ‘dream come true’ tarnished on Friday morning when he was pelted with tennis balls while driving a golf buggy through the Australian Open.
The Today show host, 49, merrily weaved through a crowd at Melbourne’s Rod Laver Arena, where round 3 of the women’s and men’s singles gets underway.
But his cheerful mood was shattered when children in the neighborhood started pinning their tennis balls on the presenter and his slow buggy.
‘Welcome back to tennis. Isn’t it great here? A dream come true this. For me to not only play on Center Court, but also to drive the official golf cart,” Karl said.
At that moment, he rolled past a group of children carrying tennis balls and rackets on their way to the arena.
Karl Stefanovic, 49, was pelted with tennis balls while driving a golf buggy through the Australian Open on Friday morning. Pictured with his co-host Sarah Abo
As Karl happily said good morning to them, the little gunslingers pelted the breakfast show host with their tennis balls.
‘Hi! Oops, calm down! Someone call the police!’ Karl exclaimed as he tried to avoid the balls flying in front of his face.
As he drove away, he added, “Anyway, like I said, it’s very nice here. We have to wait for half an hour. And we’re locking these kids up!’
The Today show host happily strolled through a crowd at Melbourne’s Rod Laver Arena as Round 3 of the women’s and men’s singles kicks off
Karl’s terrifying encounter with tennis-loving children comes just days after his wife Jasmine had a terrifying encounter with a snake while out for a walk.
She documented the terrifying moment on her Instagram Stories on Tuesday and shared a photo of the slippery creature.
“I saw this man on my walk today,” she wrote alongside a scared emoji.
But his cheerful mood was shattered when children in the neighborhood started pinning their tennis balls on the presenter and his slow buggy
Luckily for Jasmine, the animal she encountered is a diamond python, which is not poisonous.
Better yet, the snakes are known for being ‘very calm’ and are unlikely to attack a passerby.
Karl recently left Jasmine and their daughter Harper in Noosa to return to work on the Today show.
The trio spent Christmas and New Year on the Sunshine Coast with Karl’s other daughter Ava and his son Jackson.