I have only been playing golf less than five years and heard all the stories of fellow playing partners getting aces and spending a small fortune on drinks for everyone on the course when it happened and to me it didn't seem worth it. Making a hole in one never crossed my mind every time I teed it up on a par 3 just hitting the green seemed a challenge enough so an ace was out of the question. Here in North Carolina we get to play year round and it was a beautiful day Jan. 31st. so I decided to play with a couple of friends. The round started out poorly and as we approached the par three I was not expecting much so I pulled a nine iron out which was much more club than needed for 139 yards but I just wanted to get over the water. As soon as I struck the ball I knew I hit it well and begged for it to get down as it drew to the flag. We all heard the crack as the ball struck the flag and disappeared. I assumed the worst of course thinking the ball careened into the rough or bunker because we couldn't see it on the green. After a few minutes trying to locate my ball someone yelled to check the hole and sure enough there it was. Needles to say I ponied up for drinks and lucky for me there was only a couple of groups playing that day.