
The serious golfer will tell you there are two ultimates in the sport.
The not-so-serious types would admit the same.
There’s the ultimate score and the ultimate shot. Everyone who plays the game has an ultimate score. The lowest round they ever played. Nobody has ever played a lower round than Jim Furyk did at a PGA event in Connecticut in 2016. He shot a 58. None of us have ever come close, or will, but we all have a personal number that we constantly try to beat. Shoot your age and call it a day.
However, it’s the ultimate shot that we’ll always remember. A hole-in-one (HIO) doesn’t define us. But a HIO is one heck of a good talking point while waiting on a par-three tee box for the group ahead to putt out. “How many do you have?”
No doubt casual golfers know their best round, but most times can’t readily recall anything about the specifics. A hole-in-one is different. Almost all those credentialed can tell you all about the course, the hole, the distance, the club they used and how the ball landed in the cup. Much more than you want to know.
“How many do you have?” is a question I wished I was asked a week ago Tuesday while waiting on the third tee box at Red Rock Country Club. My answer would have changed on the next shot.
Two years ago there were none. Then lightning struck in the desert on June 4, 2020, and I joined the HIO club. I became a multiple member on June 28.
If you don’t mind a little braggadocio my second one was perfect. A gap wedge that went right into the clown’s mouth, jumped up through his nose, down his left arm and into the hole. Just the way I played it. Absolute joy.
Okay, no clown but a gap wedge and a little bit of joy. The third hole on the Mountain course, my home Summerlin, Nevada tract, was playing short. It was 106 yards. The pin was twenty feet behind a bunker located just in front of the center of the green. As a left handed golfer, it’s a hole that I habitually pull to the right.
I was the last of our foursome to hit. None of the other three were in jeopardy of marring their scorecards with a birdie. I am a finicky player. It drives me batty to have others standing laterally in my line of sight or within earshot on the tee. So they moved behind me, to the right, but continued a conversation that seemed quite important. These guys are politically polarized so with no blows landed I knew it wasn’t politics they were talking. Their names aren’t important, so we’ll leave those out.
My club struck the ball cleanly. Inflight Jim Nettles looked up and said, “That looks like a pretty nice shot.” He resumed his conversation with Tom Teates and Ed Wollock, who will remain nameless. I watched the ball fly just over the trap, land easily and roll and roll and then a few more rolls. Right into the cup. I turned to the group, they were too involved to even look up, and said, “Boys, I just got a hole-in-one.” I got a “Way to go” from one of them and a fist-bump or two. Then they continued chatting.
We drive up to the green. I knew enough to bring my phone. I reached in the hole, pulled the eagle ball out and asked for a picture. At that point they finally acknowledged, matter of factly, what I did. Then they went looking for their shitty shots.
A bit put out, I texted Andi and sons Jason and Scott with the picture. No caption, just the picture. Andi was playing tennis, not too far from the third hole. A wind blowing in our direction and I would have heard her scream. Jason texted back and said, “I’m surprised it took you that long, you play enough.” The news traveled internationally. Scott was getting ready to board a plane in Riyadh on his way to Dubai. He asked me, “Was it as exciting as the first one?”
The chances of us hackers making a hole-in-one is 12,500-1 meaning the Pittsburgh Pirates have a better chance of playing deep into October. For a professional golfer it drops to 2,500-1. Improbable enough. Most amateur golfers have never had the thrill and odds are never will. Two of the professional teaching staff at our club never have had one and shook their heads at my news. So, to counter Jason’s statement, a hole-in-one once is a fluke. It takes a little bit of skill and a whole lot of good fortune. Get more than one and defy all the probability. In fact, I’m reminded of an ex-teaching pro, Harry Gonder, who was a colleague back in the 70s. Harry was challenged by one of his club members. The member bet him, with great odds, he couldn’t score an ace in one thousand shots. Gonder took the bet. Finally Harry had to stop. His hands were so bloodied from the grip on the golf club he eventually threw in the red towel.
My answer to Scott was that it wasn’t even close to the thrill of the first one. In 2020 I played in a foursome where we had a little money on every hole, so sidebar conversations took a back seat to watching everyone play and perhaps making a buck. That June 4 day the par-three 15th hole at Red Rock was playing 122 yards, the shot was perfect, rolling maybe forty feet, taking a right turn and into the cup. There was enough excitement and hollering on the tee box to be heard in Riyadh. It was at the height of Covid, so as we all were about to hug an electric shock seemingly stopped us; we halted midstep and high fived instead. Either way, it was an incredible thrill. Plus, I promised myself if I ever did it I would shave my mustache that had been a part of me since 1970. However, I never thought that far ahead to a second one and whether or not I would grow it back. It took sixty-eight years to score the first HIO, who’s thinking about a second? The mustache decision is still pending.

Fishing the ace out of the cup while my three playing partners feign interest.
I’ve come to find out my group’s conversation last Tuesday was about salmon. It seems one of the boys swears the salmon at The Cheesecake Factory is the best he’s ever had and was trying to illustrate the point while I was readying to hit. Thousands of quality restaurants in Las Vegas and this yokel eats salmon at The Cheesecake Factory. I was really sorry to distract them by the ball going into the hole that nobody else saw but me.
True, the 106 yards was the shortest playing hole on the golf course that day but nonetheless it’s a one on the scorecard. Ironically, the left field wall at Yankee Stadium is 318 feet from home plate. Measured another way it’s 106 yards. A ball that flies over it into the grandstand is also a one on the scoreboard. A run is a run. A hole-in-one at any distance is an ace. Count it.
When we finished our round three hours later, two of the guys scattered. I asked one to go back into the pro shop with me to testify to what I did. He may not have seen the ball go into the hole but saw me pull it out, which was good enough to attest. Prize money was on the line, so I needed the witness.
Of course, hole-in-one lore means you have to buy drinks for the bar. We have a program that allows us to ‘insure’ the unlikely event should it ever happen. Everybody in the HIO program pays $5 every time someone scores one. It’s meant to cover the bar bill and whatever is left goes to the hero du jour. It doesn’t happen very often at our club, despite what Jason thinks. Maybe once a month, maybe twice or most of the time not at all.
I got lucky. I got back into the clubhouse at about 1:20 pm. It was a Tuesday, so the lounge had 15, maybe 18 people in it. I didn’t know anyone. The easiest thing would have been to shrug my shoulders and walk away. But I didn’t. I was feeling pretty good, so I went to each table, and those sitting at the bar, and told them I just got a hole-in-one and wanted to buy a cocktail. Some hadn’t had a drink since the Carter administration but decided as long it was on me this was time to start again. The first HIO was on a Friday and the place was jumping. The tab was close to $300. This time I knew it would be much lighter.
I waited a day or two and went back to the pro shop to see the economics of my shot. I got $750 in shop credit, good for anything like shirts, shorts, hats, clubs, whatever they sell. My bar bill was $101 and Gerry Montiel our head pro said my balance was $582. I went to the University of Miami, not Yale, but even I knew that math didn’t work. I told Gerry my balance should be $649. “No, it’s not,” he smiled. “Andi was in this morning and already spent $79 of it.” Oh.
So, what’s my biggest take away from the second greatest golf shot I ever hit? Is it the memory of HIO#2 that will be with me forever? Of the golf shop credit that might last another month? Maybe it’s the commemorative plaque that will hang in the Red Rock Country Club clubhouse noting the achievement?
Nah, it’s none of those. Instead, it’s despite all the posh and pricey seafood restaurants on the Strip, the best value in Vegas is the $23 piece of salmon at your neighborhood Cheesecake Factory. My three playing partners would tell you that aces a HIO any day.
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(If you have a few sips of coffee still in the mug and a few extra minutes and are really bored, here’s the link to HIO #1- https://royberger.com/sunday-morning-coffee-june-14-2020-time-for-a-shave/)
Congratulations! Great stuff! I am just glad you could SEE it go in the hole! That’s great improvement over the last year or so! Eyesight good enough for a HIO is great news indeed!
Great accomplishment, Roy, on the HIO. However, I think you were trumped by your savvy wife who knew how much time she had to get over to the Clubhouse Pro Shop and shop (for herself, no less) before any math calculations had time to surface. Leave it to a woman to know how to work the system (lol).
I’ve locked her out of the account. Is that wrong?
I agree with Carole. Andi gets the prize for being able to look ahead and make the necessary calculations. And because she is indeed a Lady, she just spent a little not all of the credit. I join Mat and commend your eyesight. For my part, I’ll say your newest HIO (probably statistically more difficult to attain) is your just reward for taking on Temple presidency. Enjoy the glory of the “feel good” moment my friend. There are too few of those in life.
Way to go…”Ace’s”!
That’s it. To commemorate the HIO, Connie and I are taking you and Andi to Cheesecake Factory for THE BEST miso salmon you’ve ever had! Then I expect an entire blog about the experience. Oh, and Roy, congrats on the accomplishment!!
I didn’t name names. Looks like you are self-incriminating!
Congratulations my friend. I’ve had two myself which proves that any schmuck of the street can get a HIO. This is worthy of a Temple President.
I am also a hacker who has had 2 aces rather late in life. By the way, I did go to Yale. To commemorate my aces, I framed the scorecards (signed by my playing partners), the balls, flags from the holes, and the certificates from the National Hole-in-One Registry. They are proudly displayed in my home office for all to see, but only my grandchildren have expressed any interest. Congrats on yours!!
Roy,
Congratulations on achieving a “twice in a lifetime” feat! Your blog was so fascinating that I feel like I was there with you. I would have screamed and clapped and brought much attention your way.
However, I must admit that after you called Andi and your sons, I was awaiting your call to come over to the club for the free drink.! And by the way, the cheesecake factory does have delicious salmon!!!
Congrats on the most fun achievement in golf. I also have two HIO’s but neither came at my home course. That means that all I got was an “attaboy” and two plaques that I had to buy myself. And oh by the way I am still contributing to my monthly hole in one fund at my course.
Way to go Roy. I probably started at golf about 60 years ago and haven’t had one HIO. Been within a few inches, but nothing.
To make it worse, I have friends back in Pittsburgh that have had multiples. One with 7 and one with 5. Doesn’t seem fair
Way to go Kid. Great story, more than luck.
Welcome to the club, HIO, not Red rock. I also have had two. It has been a long time ago, 1972 or 73 for my first one. I hit first because I birdied the previous hole.
About 160-175 yards. Don’t remember what iron I used but probably a 7 or 8. None of us saw it go in the hole. All four of us looked all around the green, in the front bunker and the rough. Finally someone looked in the hole. Oops, there it was. No big deal as it was a Sunday nine hole game. The big deal was that in order to have it sanctioned I had to play 18 holes. Knowing that I was leaving for New York in the late afternoon and my current wife was home with our twin sons, about 5 years old, and I was only permitted to play 9 holes I tasked one of my friends to call her when he got home after the 9 holes and I continued to play the other 9 holes knowing that all hell would break loose when I got home. Needless to say it was hell. Remember in those days we had no cell phones. Mt trip to the Big Apple was terrible.
Number 2 HIO occurred about 1979. This was a beauty. Labor Day Weekend and we were playing our Blue Coat mens club 3 day 2 man team event. Saturday, hole number 17, short, about 110 yards, pure SW 2 bounces and in. My sons were following us around and immediately took off to tell Roz who was at the pool with all our friends and then some. The pro shop loaded the drink cart and out to the pool they went. When I came in after I finished 18 I thought the entire membership was drunk and the players hadn’t even all come in yet. I think I made my last payment 2 years ago. Great to be a HIO member also.
Regards, ART
Priceless!