MY FIRST HOLE IN ONE
200
YARDS
THE KIDS CAN PLAY
AUGUST LANGE (Willow Oaks CC)
First ace: Willow Oaks CC, No. 7
I was 12 years old when I got my first hole in one two years ago. It
came at No. 7 at Willow Oaks CC, which is a 200-yard, par 3 over
water. I hit my shot and it went kind of low and faded toward the
pin. I watched it land on the front of the green and take at least
one cockeyed hop toward the hole, where I lost it. My brother
said that he saw my ball on the back right corner of the green,
but after closer inspection it was just a leaf. I made a beeline for
the hole and sure enough, my white Callaway was in it. I should
have jumped in the lake or something memorable like that, but
since my celebration wasn’t interesting or funny; I can’t even
remember what it was. But that doesn’t matter because I left my
permanent mark on Willow Oaks by getting my name engraved
on a brick that is placed in the pathway leading up to the pro
shop. This way I will never forget my first hole in one.
PHILIP VERGHESE (Army Navy CC)
First ace: Golden Horseshoe Gold, No. 7
As told by his father:
We were in Williamsburg for Memorial Day weekend and
decided to play Golden Horseshoe Gold. At the par-3 7th, with
a water carry uphill, my 9-year-old son Philip took out his M5
AUGUST LANGE
driver and blasted one onto the green. We could only see the top
of the flagstick. We walked up to the green and couldn’t find the
ball. Philip said “Let’s check the hole!” and lo and behold there
lay the Noodle ball. We jumped for joy and the people on the tee
saluted us!
WORTH THE WAIT
BILL STEPHENS (VSGA eClub Richmond)
First ace: The King & Bear Golf Club, No. 11
Forty years of golf and no hole in one. Last October, my Manchester
High School Class of ’69 celebrated our 50th Reunion.
That night, my classmates gave me personalized Titleist Pro
V1’s with the number ’69 and my name on them. Two months
later, on a golf trip to Florida, we played the King & Bear Golf
Club at the World Golf Village. Dec. 4, 2019 was a beautiful day.
I was teeing off on Hole No. 11 (my high school basketball jersey
number). The green was covered in shadows. I hit a 9-iron but
could not see where my ball landed. Arriving at the green, I saw
three balls, none of them mine. I slowly approached the hole and
looked in. There in the cup was my ’69 golf ball, looking up with
my name on it. It gets no better than that!
PHILLIP VERGHESE
BILL STEPHENS
SUBMITTED PHOTOS
20 V IRGINIA G OLFER | S EPTEMBER/O CTOBER 2020
vsga.org