6-year-old dies after being struck by golf ball hit by her dad

OREM, Utah -- A 6-year-old girl is dead after she was hit by a golf ball on Monday.

Aria Hill was sitting in a golf cart when her father hit the ball that struck her on the back of her neck, according to police.

Hill was flown by helicopter to Primary Children's Hospital in Salt Lake City, where she died from her injuries later that night.

The golf cart was neither directly behind nor directly in front of Aria's father, according to police. He said the cart was between 45 and 90 degrees to the father's left.

Aria went golfing with her dad often, her uncle David Smith said. He described her as her father's "golfing buddy."

"She loved doing it and had a good time with it all," Smith said. "That was one of their things that they would do together. It was something that was really important to them and something they did all the time. "

Steven Marett, the head golf professional at the golf course, said that while he'd occasionally seen people get hit with golf balls at the course before, he had never heard of anybody there being killed by a ball or even seriously injured.

"This is absolutely unimaginable, and it's been devastating to see it at the course and in the community," Marett said.

According to KSL, police are investigating the incident at the Links at Sleepy Ridge, but say Aria's death appears to be a "tragic accident."

A GoFundMe account set up by family members has raised over $11,000 for funeral expenses.