Morgan Evans Opens up About Scary Shark Experience in Australia

Morgan Evans is opening up about his scary shark experience, while surfing in his native Australia over the holidays. The singer reveals he got precariously close to the dangerous fish – a little too close for comfort.

“I was paddling back out, and I went underneath a wave, and I popped back up,” Evans recalled to PEOPLE. “Then as the next wave was coming towards me, I saw it swim through the wave sideways so I could see it side on. I think it was at least four feet. It was big — not like eat-you-alive big, but take a limb off, probably.”

Evans’ wife, Kelsea Ballerini, was safely watching her husband from the safety of the shore, which is where she plans on staying.

“I was like, did you see the shark?” Evans asked his wife. “Of course she didn’t, but yeah, it happened.”

“That’s why I don’t even put my toe in the ocean,” chimed in Ballerini. “I don’t mess with that.”

Evans previously revealed that was the first – and hopefully last – time he encountered the deadly animal.

“I saw my first shark in the water when I was down there. It turns out I can paddle a lot faster than I thought I could,” Evans told PopCulture.com and other media. “I went back surfing the same place the next day, so I don’t know what that means, but it was an incredible trip. At the same time, it’s awesome to be back.”

The 33-year-old might be married to a fellow country singer, but he insists there isn’t any competition with them in their careers.

“It’s definitely not competition ’cause I feel like we’re both in country music but not in the same world,” Evans maintained. “It’s really inspiring and easy to be a fan and a supporter and I think that’s one of the things that really works well for us.

“We’re also each other’s biggest critics, by the way,” he continued. “When I bring home a song like ‘Kiss Somebody,’ and she digs it, it’s like, it must be good because I think the other way is something like, ‘Ooh yes, it’s not my favorite.’ I know that’s one to probably never play again … I couldn’t be happier for every success she has.”

Photo Credit: Getty Images/Mat Hayward