Golf Canada Hole-In-One Report – August 4, 2023

The hole was measured at 183 yards, a bit down wind and I hit an 8 iron. It came the day after my 37th birthday, and after 28 years of playing golf, I finally got my first ace.

A couple weeks prior, I had just began filming my par 3s to hopefully capture my first hole-in-one on video. As luck would have it, my camera fell over before I took my shot and so I have a video of the grass with the sound of my excited screams in the background.

I was playing with Steve Easthope and Dennis Murphy, both Winston and Golf Canada members. The hole-in-one happened on #11, a challenging par 3 that is all carry over a hazard to a green surrounded by trouble everywhere but right. It was playing 157 yards into a half club headwind, and the pin was centre right. There was room on the green short of the pin, so I thought a 7 iron would get there and also take the back hazard out of play.

I hit it well and it was on a great line; it drew in nicely over the hazard, pitched eight feet short of the pin and rolled in. There were shrubs partially blocking the view, but I saw it disappear. Steve was only pretty sure, and of course I wasn’t saying anything till we got there, but there it was. It was my second one, but the first one at my home club with regular playing partners, so it was way more special.

I have sore knees, so I ride a cart, and I usually grab whichever one is handy. That morning there were several, including #1. I grabbed it. I never pick a cart because of the number but that day I did.

Thanks for your kind words of congratulations! It happened to be my third ace but still pretty darn exciting! I was playing my home course, Shannon Lake, with my usual Friday fun group of ladies. I believe it was a mid-pin, possibly around 125 yards. I decided to use my 4 hybrid club on that hole.

It was mid-morning, and I felt the swing was smooth and the direction was straight. What I didn’t know was that two of the ladies actually saw it go in the hole. I walked my cart down to the side of the green to park it and ambled towards the green looking for my ball. One of the gals had the foresight to push record on her phone so actually got my reaction when I discovered it in the hole! Hugs all around and we shared a little toast of something yummy that one of the ladies always carries as ‘birdie juice’.

It was a thrill to have a hole-in-one on July 15, 2023. I was playing with Sandra, Judy and Cheryl, the members of my newly formed Masters competitive curling team. I was trying to impress them at my Canmore course but without much success until we came to hole #12.

When I stepped onto the tee box, I recognized that the pin placement was the same as it had been last July 13th when I had an ace on the same hole. The same white flag was again placed in line with the left edge of the sand trap. The distance was the same at 107 yards. Even though I have new clubs this year, I reached for my 7 hybrid as last year’s success was with a 7 iron. The ball soared and landed three feet from the hole and rolled in at the same angle as my last. How uncanny is that! The other cool fact is that everyone watched the ball go into the hole. There was a pause and a look of disbelief between us before the cheering began.

I was playing with my partner Tim Young, and the yardage was 115 so I used my 7 iron. The pin placement was behind a large sand bunker, so we didn’t see the ball go in. We knew it was a great shot, but we looked for the ball off the back of the green before I glanced in the hole and saw the ball.

I had a hole-in-one at Barcovan Golf Course on hole #18 on July 25^th. I was playing in the weekly ladies’ league with Janet, Linda and Kim. I used an easy 8 iron for the 99 yard shot. The ball landed off the green and rolled on and into the hole. A superb ending to what had been a horrendous round.

I had been playing with my friends (Aiden McRae and Riley Douglas) and the yardage was 170 yards. I used my 6 iron.

On July 25, 2023, I aced the 10th hole at Islington Golf Club. The hole was playing 165 yards uphill to the green. I was playing with my buddy, Brian Beith, and I used my Taylor Made M4 driver. This was my second hole-in-one, having aced Islington #6, on September 22, 2020.

I used a 6 iron to complete this feat and the hole was playing 135 yards.

I used a 9 iron from 155, landed roughly eight feet past the hole and spun back into the hole! It took about 10 seconds to fall into the hole. I didn’t think it was going to go in but finally fell! I was playing with a couple of my buddies at men’s night, their names are Brandon Gibson and Tom Dawson.

It was in the second round of the St. Lawrence eight man tournament at Malone Golf Club. I was playing with Sean O’Conner, Matt Heney and Tanner Wiseman. The hole was 186 yards and I hit a 6 iron.

I had a hole-in-one at Cardinal Lakes Golf Club! It was on the back nine on the Sparrow course! We were 94 yards with a 7 iron! Margaret Edwards and Tom Halsall were with me to celebrate the shot.

I played Granite Hills Golf Course in Lac Du Bonnet, Manitoba. We were visiting from Calgary and played with my brother-in-law, nephew and a longtime friend. I used a 7 iron on the 12th hole, 154 yards. It hit the pin and straight in the cup. This was my 7th hole-in-one.

Nine years ago, we were playing Granite Hills and on the 12th hole, as we were teeing off, we received a phone call that our son who was 35 years old passed away very unexpectedly. It will be nine years on August 5th. I was golfing with my brother-in-law and nephew as well that day. As I was teeing off the other day my thoughts were with our son Ryan and as everyone said he was as definitely looking down on me. We are going to make a trip to Scotland next July, hopefully to play the Old Course to honour my grandparents who immigrated from Scotland, my parents and Ryan; they were all avid golfers.

I was playing with my son Elijah Girolametto, Ernie Romaine and Tom Fisher. It was on the 17th hole at the Oaks of St. George. The hole was 117 yards. I used a pitching wedge. The ball went over the flag, stuck on the green and then came back down the slope about 10 feet. This is my first ever hole-in-one.

On July 17th, I was playing with Freddy Vautour who shot 91, and Bernard Savoie who shot 83. They witnessed my hole-in-one on the 4th hole of the Pine course which is 150 yards long. I hit my pitching wedge. I used a Titleist ProV1x ball. My score that day was 74 from the yellow tees.

I had a hole-in-one on July 30th on the 11th hole at my home course Kanawaki Golf Club, during my final qualifying round for my Interclub team tryouts. The distance was 163 yards, I used my 9 wood to hit my shot and it took a bounce and in. My playing partners were Paul Rice and Nicolas Ponton.

After 58 years of golf, I finally made a hole-in-one! A few weeks earlier, on the same hole, I hit the pin and finished six inches from the hole. I wondered if I would ever score an ace.

I was playing with fellow National Pines members Mike Sullivan and Shael Dolman in our regular Tuesday morning tee time. The scorecard yardage was 158 yards. The actual yardage to the pin was 142 (front pin). I used an 8 iron. 

The yardage was 143 yards, and I used an 8 iron. I was playing with Shane Roney, Brodie McGregor and Ron Hately (there was also a Cabot caddie with us).

It was my ladies night at Maple Ridge. It was 99 yards on hole #3 with my pitching wedge. I will remember it forever!

What a day!

It was 115 yards from the yellows, and I used my driver.

It was the first time golfing with my three good friends after Drayton Valley had to evacuate due to a wildfire. The hole was one of the most beautiful holes at our course, 81 yards from the red tees, over a pond that looks as large as the Pacific Ocean. I was the first to tee off, I grabbed my 8 iron, and had a great swing. The ball hit the green about two yards in front of the hole and rolled to the flag. From the angle I was standing I was sure the ball had rolled past the flag, but my friends whooped and hollered and told me it was in the hole. I didn’t believe them.

I was playing with my sister and hit a pitching wedge from 137 yards.

I had 178 yards from the blue tees to the pin and it was favouring the right side of the green just a bit so as a leftie I decided to play a little draw to that pin. It landed about one foot past the pin and it one hopped back right into the cup. It was special because I had just missed one on the Friday prior with my friends on hole #15 at Whitewater. It was a very cool experience and even cooler because it was in the presence of my parents and daughter.

As a side bar, a good friend of mine was playing behind me and drove up to the green after he realized I had made an ace and almost tackled me to the ground; obviously very happy for me as well. I will never forget it!

This was my sixth hole-in-one, and I am very happy about it. It was a sunny July 30th, and I was playing with Michael Willett, Lorraine and John Drummond. Hole #15 at Paragon is 128 yards, and I used my 3 wood.

My hole-in-one was made while playing in our weekly Ladies League, so I was credited with an eagle for our Birdies, Ringer and Chip-in competition. I was playing with my friends Linda and Elise who helped me celebrate, very loudly, I might add.  The distance to the flag on hole #16 measured 111 yards but as the green is elevated and there was a bit of wind, I played it 121 yards with a 7 iron. My shot was perfectly straight and aimed at the flag. The ball landed on the front of green and rolled perfectly straight into the centre front of the hole.  Honestly, it seemed to take forever to get there.

There is a bit more to this story. Two days later, I was playing on our South course again in our Senior Intersectional team try-outs with a lady named Heather. I told her about my hole-in-one, and she said that it was on her bucket list. As we played the 16th hole, she made a hole-in-one! Unbelievable!

A magnificent day for me!

I’m thrilled about my hole-in-one on July 30. I was playing the par 3, the 200-yard 14^th hole at Beverly Golf and Country Club.  I’m a proud member of Beverly. I used a 3 wood and because of the glare and distance, we couldn’t actually see it go in the hole! We knew it was close but did confirm until I investigated the hole.

I was playing with my good friend Adam Bourgeois. We were playing from the gold tees and it was 163 yards uphill in the wind and the rain! I used a 7 iron.

My golf partner Kate Swift and I were playing our front 9 on the Island Course at Pakenham Highlands Golf Club in Pakenham, ON. 

Hole #6 is the Island green and is Pakenham Highlands’ signature hole. It is unforgiving. I knew I needed lots of loft to not overshoot the green. Since I tend to slice my irons when under pressure, I choked down on my 5 wood and aimed directly for the flag. 

Kate shouted, “you did it – you did it, a hole-in-one.” I was skeptical and Kate just kept grinning at me. I thought that I had bumped into the flag stick and rolled onto the fringe. She said, “I saw and heard it hit the flag stick and drop in the cup.” When we approached the flag stick, with my putter in hand and peeked in, sure enough there was my Pinnacle Rush ball in the cup!