## Facts

- John and Miriam Fenton owned a residence in Monson, Massachusetts, adjoining a nine-hole golf course operated by Quaboag Country Club, Inc.
- After purchasing the property in 1952, the Fentons experienced recurrent incursions from balls hit from the ninth hole onto their land.
- A master found that an average of about 250 golf balls per year landed on the Fentons’ property.
- Golf balls broke sixteen panes of glass in the home over time; the plaintiffs were reimbursed for some replacements but not all.
- Golfers sometimes entered the property to retrieve balls; at least one confrontation occurred involving a golfer threatening the Fentons’ dog and raising a club at John Fenton.
- The club constructed a partial fence, but balls continued to enter the property, causing damage and creating ongoing fear of injury and loss of quiet enjoyment.

## Issues

1. Whether recurring golf-ball invasions onto the plaintiffs’ land constituted a continuing trespass and nuisance justifying injunctive relief.
2. What damages were recoverable for (a) physical damage to the property, (b) discomfort and annoyance from the interference, and (c) alleged diminution in the property’s market value.

## Decision

- The court affirmed injunctive relief restricting operation of the ninth hole to prevent golf balls from entering the plaintiffs’ property.
- The court affirmed damages for broken window panes and for discomfort and annoyance caused by the continuing nuisance.
- The court reversed damages awarded for permanent diminution in fair market value because the interference was abatable by injunction; permanent-value damages were not the proper measure.

## Legal Principles

- Recurrent physical invasions of another’s land (such as repeated golf balls) may constitute both trespass and nuisance when they materially interfere with use and enjoyment.
- Injunctive relief is appropriate where invasions are continuing and money damages alone do not adequately protect the landowner’s right to security and quiet enjoyment.
- For an abatable nuisance, damages should not be measured by permanent diminution in market value; the measure instead focuses on temporary harm (such as loss of use or rental value during the interference) plus specific compensation for proven property damage and personal discomfort.
- Partial remedial efforts by the defendant do not bar an injunction or eliminate liability when the interference continues.

## Conclusion

The court held that repeated golf-ball intrusions created a continuing trespass and nuisance warranting an injunction and damages for repair costs and substantial interference with enjoyment, but it disallowed permanent market-value diminution damages because the condition could be ended through abatement.


Fenton v. Quaboag Country Club, Inc., 353 Mass. 534, 233 N.E.2d 216 (Mass. 1968)