Hi °C | Lo °C They haven’t been missing Tiger Woods from the game of golf at Whitehead, where the ball has been flying into the cup from all angles of late.
Two of the club’s long-term members, David Eastham and lady president Julia Gardner, celebrated their first ever holes-in-one — the latter at the age of 78.
But the cream of the crop was provided by Marshall Boyd who managed the incredible feat of a hole-in-one albatross — by holing his tee-shot on a par four!
Julia, a 27-handicapper, took a rescue club off the tee for her perfect shot.
Eastham struck a three iron to the 18th for his while the club’s lady president followed that two days later by acing the ninth hole.
“I always wanted to have a hole-in-one, and now I’ve got one,” Julia said.
“I saw the ball heading towards the pin but didn’t know it had gone in until someone who had seen it drop in told me.
“I’ve been playing for a long time, at Killymoon for 30 years and for the last 11 at Whitehead, and I never thought I was going to get one.”
David, who is a 14-handicap and retired, took a three-iron for his 175-yard tee-shot.
“It was always on line, it was just a question of whether or not it was long enough. Someone saw it going in, and that was that,” he said.
Julia celebrated her success quietly at home while David honoured the tradition of buying everyone in the clubhouse a drink.
“Thankfully, it was a weekday, so there weren’t too many in the bar, but we did celebrate,” he said.
Unfortunately for six-handicapper Marshall Boyd, he won’t be repeating his amazing feat anytime soon as he subsequently injured his shoulder on a recent skiing trip and won’t be back on the fairways until June at the earliest.
“It’s typical to play through the worst of the weather and now I can’t get out again,” he said.
“But that shot is something I’ll never forget — although I’ll probably never do anything like it again. You couldn’t wipe the smile off my face for days. It was at the 14th, and we were playing off winter tees, but it was still a full 275 yards, which is just about the limit of my range with the driver.
“There’s water in front of the green and a bridge which the ball must have gone across to get to the green.
“I was playing with the club captain Eamon McAllister and vice-captain Jeremy Jones and we were all looking in the water and behind the green until, I think it was Jeremy, decided to look in the cup and there the ball was.
“I’ve been playing for 43 years and had three holes-in-one before and thought I’d seen everything there is to see in this game but I never thought I’d do something like that.”
