I was on the Rivals national board and there was a thread about seeing or making a double eagle (or albatross if you're so inclined) and I figured this may be a fun thread for hornfans. I used to be a 3 handicap when I played competitively and I never have once had a double eagle or a hole in one. I have more eagles than I can count on par 5's at various courses, but I have holed out for eagle from a considerable distance (130+) 5 different times and remember every one of them like it was yesterday. What are some of yall's best golf stories? Feel free to include golf jokes too, as those never get old.
I eagled no. 8 at Memorial Park three times in a row in the early 90's (though I think it was 17 back then), twice drunk. And I shot a 98 at Pebble.
played torrey pines in san diego a few years ago with my dad. being from out of town, they send a pro with you for the first 3 holes. that seemed very odd to us, but it was pretty cool actually. he gave us tips about how the greens usually break towards the water etc etc. so we were playing the south course, which is where they play the final 2 rounds of the pga tournament and the US Open in '08. first hole is a par 4 and i had about 210 yards for my second shot. i skank a low 3 wood that goes 10 feet off the ground but heads for the green and then we can't see what it does. the pro drives up to the green and was yelling "it's in the hole!". sweet. so i eagle the first hole at torrey pines. second hole is a short par 4 and i have another long second shot that somehow i stick to 1 foot and kick it in for birdie. 3rd hole is a beautiful downhill par 3, and on the tee i turn to the pro and ask "hey what's the course record?". i'm joking because there is no way in hell i'm even gonna break 80 on this hard course. but i hit a decent shot and 2 putt for par, so 3 under after 3 holes and the pro departs. i came back to earth and still shot a respectable 81 (for me). but my dad and i still laugh about that pro watching me on the first 3 holes.
The first time i broke 80 was on my 15th or 16th birthday and i played with my dad, Tom Landry, and Tom, Jr. I remember nothing about the round, but it was a pretty special day. Best round was the first time I played Randolph North in Tucson in 2003. It's a fairly simple course but even I was surprised to make the turn at 3 under and finish with a -5 67. I play to about a 4-5 and have been down to a scratch for periods of my playing days and still have yet to hole out from more than about 20 yards or have a hole in one. I imagine I'll remember those shots if and when they happen. I guess I have to actually play more than about once every three months to give myself a real shot though.
I birdied three of the last four holes to win a high school tournament by one shot in Lano. The wind blew 30+ miles per hour all day and my last four holes were all downwind. I holed out from a bunker of the 15 hole. Made a short put for birdie on 16. Lipped one out from 10 feet on 17 and then birdied the par 5 18.
Well, I have not played many of the famed courses that some of you have; though maybe a few of my stories might be interesting. I'll try to start from close to the beginning -- I was the #5 guy on the high school golf team. I played a round in which I hit 8 of 9 greens and got up and down out of the sand on the other hole to save par. It would have been nice to make a couple more putts, but I still shot 35. The point of this is that our #1 player was sitting on a bench close to the clubhouse thinking that he was the cat's meow because he had shot a 35 that day. My friend and playing partner (the #2 player) informed him that POF also shot a 35. That was cool. Another thing that was cool was that I was fortunate to receive some lessons from Harvey Penick. However, the best lessons I ever received were from two of my very good friends who ended up playing on the Hogan, Nike, Nationwide tour (or whatever it's called now). Those guys taught me how to hit the ball and how to practice. One of my other stories is that one time when I was with my dad (he didn't play because at that time he had a bad back), I made 5 birdies and an eagle. That was a nice day. And, one of the most influential golf stories in my life was when I was playing with my dad and I threw a club. My dad ripped into me. Let's just say that he gave me a lot of, uh, advice. -- I haven't thrown a club since. Of course, it's always fun to go out to Hancock and shoot 32.
Hole in One. 1994 Riverplace golf course. #16 I think. Playing Hancock and shanked a ball from the tee right into the back of a pickup headed down 38th. Lyons. Par 3 probably 7 or 8. One of my foursome said "don't hit that squirrel" Completely topped the ball and sent a worm burner right into the head of said squirrel about 30 yards in front of me. He dropped dead right there on the course. We all fell to the ground and laughed for a good 15 mins.
Oh yeah, I'm somehow related to Ben Hogan. Pop says it is distant, but I guess it still counts. He played golf with him at Diamond Oaks, or maybe Shady Oaks(whichever was his home course in FW) once or twice before he died. Walked and smoked the entire time. Said about 3 words when they played.
Shot a 45 on the front nine of Torrey Pines North using rented clubs, no glove, and tennis shoes. The back nine was a train wreck. yes, I suck *** at golf.
i guess I was about 14 when my dad and I played at LB Houston in Dallas. I had used my 8 iron around the #7 green and then left it there. I did not notice it was gone until the #9 green. My dad with this very sturn voice in look to me to start walking an go and get the golf. I was playing with a set of Ben Hogan Irons (blades). I walk back asking all the groups and finally find my club three-four groups back. When I et the club back the guy asks me "Hey is this one of your clubs also?" I look at the club and IT IS MY DAD"S. My dad left a club on #8 and they had picked it up also. So I run back to the #10 to tee off for the back nine. I get there my dad asks "Did you find your club?" Me: "Yes I did....and I also found yours!" The look was priceless. I also remember almost being decapitated while walking to my ball on the #16 fairway of the creek course at Indian Creek (Carrollton). Again about 14 years old. The guy on #17 teed off and never yelled "four" or gave any warning. For those familiar with the course I was walking next to the river that runs along the 16 fairway. My dad being there sees the whole incident and almost kicks the guys *** for not saying anything to warn us. Never a hole in one. Never holed out from over 50 yards. Never shot under par for nine holes
Great thread topic, btw.#1 During the summer of 2001, I was in my home town playing the golf course I grew up on. I managed to birdie holes 1, 2, 3, and 4 to start the round. Then, on the 150 yard 5th, I made a hole in one! I followed that up with another birdie on hole 6. For those of you keeping score at home, I was 7 under through 6 holes. In fairly disappointing fashion, I only parred the final three holes for a crowd pleasing 29. Unfortunately, it was dark outside by then, so I did not get to play the back nine. #2 I have made 5 holes in one. The best being a 196 yard 3 iron into a 15 mph wind at Columbia Lakes. #3 When I was 8 years old, I was playing at my home course with my dad. We were on #3, which was a par 4 with water on the front left side of the green. I hit my tee shot down the left side of the fairway to the 150 yard marker. I then proceeded to carve a mighty 3 wood around the water, up on the green and into the hole. That was the first time I ever holed out. I can still remember it vividly.
Ok, a little more; these stories are more about negative experiences than accomplishments: I was playing in a tournament when my competitor beat me 7 and 5. I was 1 over par after 13 holes. I thought I was doing well; but the guy I was playing against was 6 under par. Holy cow. I got my *** beat. Ok. I'll take the beating. He was better than I was. That guy ended up playing on the Hogan, Nike, Nationwide Tour (or whatever it's called now). In the Austin City Championship, I bogeyed the last hole to miss the cut by a stroke. I never expected to win the tournamenat because there were a couple of people who were the best players at the time (well, several players actually), but it would have been nice to make the last two rounds. To go way back into the time machine, I hit a nice drive on #18 at MoWillie (the hole might be #9, they used to reverse the 9's but it's the hole on the left) ... anyway I hit my drive down the right side of the fairway during UT Intramurals, but that meant I had to hit an 8-iron over the sand trap. (Normally I draw the ball and I would have been on the left side of the fairway with better access to the pin. I pushed my drive and it didn't come back.) My 8-iron shot hit the lip of the bunker. After blasting out, I missed my 6-foot putt and I missed the cut into the final 16 by 1 stroke. Another time, I 4-putted the 16th hole and then I lost the 17th hole to lose a match 2 and 1. That guy ended up on the mini-tour as well. Oh well, so close but yet so far. I guess I should have practiced harder.
I have 2 stories that are pretty fun: 1) Two summers ago, I played in one of the oilman's tourneys up here in NW Wyoming. The first hole was about 360 yds from the tees, but looks a lot closer. There's a hill that guards the left and front left side of the green about 25-40 yards in front. My flight all hits and as I come up I joke about being able to hit the green. I ended up crushing one which bounced off the top of said hill and landed on the edge of the green about 60 feet from the pin. I then stepped up and nailed the putt for an eagle (and won the long putt of the day!) 2) My dad and I were playing at Bentwater. I skulled the ball out of a wet sand trap--the ball hit the top of the pin and seemed to roll down the flagpole into the hole. Weirdest thing I've ever seen.
^^ Oh yeah, and the best part about story #1. I finished the front 9 under par for the first time in my life with a 33! Then promptly imploded on the back 9 and shot a 66....
July 4, 2005 I'm home on summer break and playing golf with my dad at Stonebridge Country Club in McKinney. Neither of us are playing that well, but we are having a good time just playing. We get to #5, a par three. My dad swings and then starts yelling at his ball and then it disappears. The cart girl then pulls up and we ask her to go check the hole. She goes over and pulls it out of the cup and my dad and I start yelling. It was his first hole-in-one and I got to be there for it (on the fourth of July). Just a very cool father/son moment.
I play or hit golf balls almost everyday, but I have no good stories, only misery. But that is because my game is in bad shape right now and I am depressed about it, back down to a 3.
A few stories I play golf for Army, so obviously one of our keystone events is Army - Navy. We play a Ryder Cup style format with them every October, it is intense. I'll never forget that first tee, hundreds of people crammed around this tee box at 9 in the morning, everyone wearing an army or navy shirt. A couple Generals shook my hand while I'm trying to get my ball out of my pocket with a fluttering hand. The hardest part was putting the ball on the tee! I don't think I'll ever be that nervous for the rest of my life; I really don't see how it's possible. I did manage to hit it down the middle....by the grace of God. Another memorable shot was back at West point, me and 3 other teammates were practicing for Army navy, playing a 2 man best ball match play, like we play the first day of Army navy. Me and my partner were down 2 with 4 holes to go, and both of us bomb it out on the 15th and our 2 opponents went down the pipe. Well, long story short, they got confused and HIT THE WRONG BALL.....theirs balls were just a couple feet away, and they got lazy or something. We of course held them to it, and won the hole. The next hole is an EXTREME downhill par 3, and when I say extreme I mean about a 100 foot drop. When the pin is up front, you can only see the flag, not the pin, so I hit my shot first....then everyone else goes. We quickly find three balls, but could'nt find mine. I assumed it went long, couldn't find it.....then my teammate said, maybe it's in the hole....sure enough, it was. It landed about 10 feet directly behind the hole, spun back right in. We ended up winning the match on 18. Bragging rights. Finally, a sad story. State championships my senior year in high school. Final round... I was 2 under through 8 on the day, no bogeys, got to my 9th hole...short par 4...pulled out the 3 wood and couldn't have hit it better or straighter. I bend down to pick up my tee while it's falling and my ball lands on a sprinkler and shoots way forward and right......OUT OF BOUNDS. I end up tripling the hole and got 4th in state....by 2 shots.
First time I ever set foot on Augusta National, words can't describe. Watching Lefty win his first major on final round Sunday there was majestic.
In 1992 I made a hole-in-one at #9 in Uvalde, Texas. 7 iron, 145 yards. I was 16 years old. Two weeks later I used the same club to hole out a 145 yard shot on #1, a par 4, for an eagle. In 1994 I holed out a 6 iron for an eagle at #18 at Flying L in Bandera. It was a practice round for the district golf tournament. I was playing in an eightsome at the time. But perhaps my best accomplishments were finishing 3rd at our local tournament my senior year. And in the only city championship I played in, I finished in the championship flight.
I shot an 84 at Pebble a couple of years ago. It was probably the best score at the best course I have ever shot. Oddly though I felt a lot better about a 92 I shot at Spy Glass. That damn Spy Glass course is relentless. It wore me out hitting freaking 3 and 4 irons into elevated greens all freaking day. Shot 92 at the Old Course which was nice. It would have been sub 90 but a quad at the road hole got me.
Great topic ... #1 all time - Aced #13 at Avery two years ago, playing with my dad and one of my good friends. Was very, very awesome - still have the ball, my one and only ace. Lots of hole-outs for eagle, one on day #2 of UT walk-on qualifying (I didn't make the cut ).
