September 16, 2012 was a beautiful sunny morning in Richmond, KY. I had promised my 14 year-old son Lucas that I would take him to play golf that afternoon. Lucas is new to the game and I was looking forward to he and I spending some quality time together, sharing stories and working on our golf game. Lucas and I enjoyed the ups and downs of the first 8 holes, working through the frustrating shots and celebrating some great recovery shots and made putts.
Hole 9 is a 136 yard par 3 over water to a very narrow green, sloped back to front. The wind was in our face and I expected the hole to play more like 150 yards. I selected my 9-iron and placed my Titleist NXT Tour #2 ball between the markers. I took a couple of short practice swings and lined what is now the best shot I have ever hit.
My tempo was deliberate, contact was crisp, balance was perfect. I picked up the ball at the apex of the shot and told Lucas that was one of the best strikes of my golf career. I told him the ball was tracking right at the flag. The reflection of the sun off the water prevented both of us from seeing the ball land, so we were not sure of the outcome from the tee box.
Lucas proceeded to hit his tee shot into the water and we moved to the drop area for his third shot. I asked Lucas if he could see my ball on the green and he indicated it looked like it was right behind the pin. I told him it looked like the ball mark but not the ball.
When we arrived at the green, I asked Lucas if my ball was on the upper side with his because it was not on the lower side. Lucas said it was not anywhere on the top. I asked Lucas what the possibility was that it was in the cup since the ball mark was 10-12 inches directly behind the cup. Lucas giggled and then the anticipation grew. I asked Lucas to go peek in the cup to satisfy my curiosity. Lucas and I both were eager to learn the outcome.
He peered into the cup and raised his head very quickly. With eyes as wide as I had every see, he said "it's in the cup, it's in the cup". We couldn't believe it. We know golfers that have achieved this wonderful feat, but have never witnessed a hole-in-one or thought it would ever happen to me. We were not really sure what we were supposed to do, however, we stared yelling and screaming. Running around the green with the I-phone video camera rolling, high fives were exchanged and a big hug from my 14 year-old completed the celebration.
I have had a few days to reflect on the event. Achieving the hole-in-one milestone in my golf career was great, but having Lucas there with me made it awesome. It is a memory that will reside with us both for an eternity.