Christian Mark Whiteman had been drinking and playing golf in November 2015, when one of his fellow golfers walked up to him, armed with a club and struck him in the head.

Invermay man Jamie Alexander Collins, who was 21 at the time, was arrested over the incident and is on trial in the Launceston Supreme Court. He has pleaded not guilty to intentionally causing bodily harm.

On Thursday, the court heard Mr Collins and Mr Whiteman had argued earlier in the day and at one point had to be separated. The accused and his alleged victim had travelled to a golf course on the North Coast during a day out with their social club.

Crown prosecutor John Ranson told the jury the pair had a verbal argument during a game of golf but it was not until they were on a bus heading back to Launceston that their dispute turned physical.

He said passengers on the bus had to separate them “like you would two children on an excursion playing up”.

Once they both arrived back in Launceston, the group ended up at the Park Hotel at Invermay.

It was there, Mr Ranson said, that Mr Collins attacked the complainant.

He walked up to Mr Whiteman, yelled something out and struck him in the head with a golf club, Mr Ranson said.

The court heard Mr Whiteman was left unconscious and Mr Collins fled from the scene.

A doctor was called to the stand to explain the extent of Mr Whiteman’s injuries.

Rodney Lambert, the current director of medical services at the Launceston General Hospital, said Mr Whiteman was admitted to the emergency department suffering “life-threatening injuries”.

“He could easily have died before the ambulance got there,” Dr Lambert said.

He said the patient suffered a fractured skull, bruising on the brain, an eight-centimetre laceration on his head and was still “totally unconscious” when he arrived at the hospital. He was then transferred to the Royal Hobart Hospital “urgently” needing brain surgery – he spent 11 days in intensive care.

Defence lawyer Greg Richardson said there was no arguing his client struck the complainant with a golf club.

Mr Richardson said the “primary issue of this case is what his purpose was, the reason for this happening”.

“What was his intention,” he said.

The 11 members of the jury were taken to the Park Hotel on Thursday afternoon to view the scene.

The trial before Justice Michael Brett will continue on Friday.