I am in my early 60's and now have time for daily golf adventures. My father started me early at age 7 with a few outings at our Wing Park public course in Elgin, Illinois. Until this week I have never had an ace, but that changed at my home course of Angels Crossing in Vicksburg, Michigan.

I was out early on Wednesday morning playing alone with various course workers mowing. I arrived at the first par three already one under par after sinking a 25 foot birdie putt on the tough starting hole. Gator was just finishing the mowing of my tee box and he pulled back to let me play my shot over the hazard to the elevated third green playing about 160 yards to a back right pin position. I hit a solid AP1 six iron at the pin using an NXT Tour ball and both Gator and I watched the ball hit short of the crest at the high point of the green. Then the ball disappeared on line with the flagstick.

I turned to Gator and said that shot was at the pin and he agreed. So I drove to the back of the green, grabbed a few clubs, climbed to the pin position and started looking for my ball. Gator followed me across the hazard and was preparing to mow another tee box, but he was watching me as I finally walked to the pin and looked down to see my first hole-in-one ball at the bottom of the cup. He saw me extract the ball from the hole and we had a short celebration. It was the first ace that either of us had observed. Luckily, it was my ace!

I finished the front nine with a 2 under 34 and finished the round at 75 (3 over - a better score than typical for my single digit handicap). I have to get my next ace faster than my first - just can't wait 52 years for the next one!