Boca Raton Grandmother, 69, Jailed After Mizner Park Golf Ball Altercation

Nancy Simons (left, Palm Beach County Jail photo) and Villagio restaurant (Boca Daily News photo).

A 69-year-old Boca Raton grandmother was arrested after she allegedly snatched a woman’s cellphone and smashed it to the ground during an altercation near an outdoor table at a restaurant in Mizner Park over an errant golf ball hit by her grandson.

Nancy Simons, 69, of Boca Raton was arrested following the incident that played out near the Villagio Italian restaurant on Monday afternoon at about 4:30 p.m. According to a police report, the confrontation began when a golf ball hit by one of Simons’ grandchildren accidentally hit a juvenile girl in the head; a putting green area is located across from the outdoor seating area at the restaurant, where the child who was struck was sitting.

The report states Simons’ grandson and his brother walked from the green toward the restaurant where both families were seated at nearby outdoor tables. The mother of the child who was struck asked the boys where their parents were, prompting a brief but heated verbal argument between the victim’s family — including her parents — and Simons’ son, daughter-in-law and other relatives, according to a probable cause affidavit filed in Palm Beach County.

After the exchange, Simons’ family stood up and began walking toward their Chevrolet Suburban in the parking lot, the affidavit says. The victim’s mother, still seated with her two young daughters, called 911 to report the incident. As she spoke with the dispatcher, Simons allegedly grabbed the phone from her hand and threw it onto the pavement, cracking the glass on both the front and back, the report states. Simons then continued yelling at the woman and walked toward her as she tried to move away, police said. Officers later reviewed surveillance video that corroborated the woman’s account, showing the grandmother “yelling,” and the phone being thrown to the ground.

A green area within Mizner Park, Boca Raton, FL, April 2026. (Photo: Boca Daily News)

Simons was arrested on charges of robbery by sudden snatching without a firearm and felony criminal mischief valued at $1,000 or more. She allegedly admitted to investigators that she grabbed the phone, threw it and continued yelling during the phone call with police, the report states.

The golf ball incident itself was described by all parties as accidental, police said. No charges were filed in connection with the children’s play at the putting green. Simons was released from the Palm Beach County jail after posting a combined $5,000 combined bond for the two charges.