Ranking Each Hole-In-One

Sometimes, parents with multiple kids will get asked, "Which kid is your favorite?" It can be a tough question to answer. After all, who has a favorite kid? Deep down, we all know parents have a favorite child. As an only child, I never had to deal with that.

Just recently, I recorded my third career hole-in-one. I'm your typical average golfer. I don't hit the ball that far, and my short game needs work and I miss shots to the right. But I've been very fortunate to have three hole-in-ones. The odds of an average amateur golfer getting three hole-in-ones at my age are about 1 in 500. Given those odds, I feel fortunate. Just like parents of multiple children, they feel lucky.

So, like the parents who get asked which child is their favorite, I was asked by a colleague which hole-in-one is my favorite. I will answer that question. I will rank my hole-in-ones. I'll also briefly overview the shot, what I was thinking, and the elements surrounding the shot.

My favorite hole-in-one was the first one. It came in 2007 at a fundraiser tournament at the Country Club of Troy in Troy, NY. This shot is by far my favorite hole-in-one. It's easily the most difficult of the three. The hole was playing 205 yards. I hit a 3-wood. For my non-golfer friends, that's a very tough club to hit. What I love about this hole-in-one is that Dad prophesized it.

Because this was a fundraiser, there was a competition to win a television. The rules were if your shot hit the green, you were entered into a drawing for a fancy TV. As with many popular fundraisers, par 3s have groups waiting.

The First One - Pictured (L to R) is Ed Mcgettigan, myself, Former NY Senate Majority Leader Joe Bruno and Dad

This fundraiser was the same. There were a couple of groups waiting to hit the shot. When the group before us left the tee box, Dad asked, "What happens if you get a hole-in-one? Do you get entered into the drawing for the TV?" He added, "Technically, you didn't hit the green. You went into the hole." Five minutes later, I delivered the best three-wood of my life. It was precisely how I envisioned it - a little baby cut. (left to right ball flight)

It landed 20 feet in front of the hole, checked up a bit, and rolled in. The groups behind us, watching, yelled, "That went in!" It just so happened they were with the New York State Thruway Police. They escorted me (on golf carts) to my hole-in-one. The fundraiser felt I should win the TV outright and not be entered into the drawing. I held on to that TV for 12 years.

Furthermore, I became known at Dad's event. Dad was well known at these events. He knew everyone, given all his connections. I was always proud of him. But I always referred to at these events as "Charlie's boy." But on that August day in 2007, Dad was known as the father of the hole-in-one kid.

My 2nd favorite hole-in-one came with Mom and two boys fishing that were watching in November of 2021. This shot was probably the easiest of the three shots. It was 105 yards. It was perfect for a little cut pitching wedge. It came at the third hole of the Country Club of North Carolina (CCNC) Dogwood Course. This hole has an island green.

The Second One - These kids were fishing when it happened.

If you miss the green, then you are likely in the water. But the hole is relatively short, playing at an average of 115 yards.

The pin was close to the front of the green, and getting it near the cup would require a perfectly placed shot. That's precisely what I did. On the 105-yard hole, the ball traveled 104 yards, 2 feet and 11 inches. It landed 1 inch short of the cup, hit the base of the flagstick, and went in the cup. Because of the angle of the sun and shadows, Mom and I couldn't see if the ball went in. But we did hear a loud sound, which we thought was the ball going in. Unbeknownst to us, kids were fishing nearby saw the shot and yelled out, "It went in!"

I still didn't believe it after hearing their cheers, but as I walked closer to the hole and didn't see a ball on the green, I thought I had achieved my second hole-in-one. I threw the club probably about 20 yards toward the green. What made this special was being able to have Mom as a witness. My first hole-in-one came with Dad, so it was fitting to have the second one have Mom as a witness.

Last but not least is the most recent hole-in-one that came on the last day of the year in 2023. It was a perfect way to ring in 2024. I was playing alone. Thankfully, there were witnesses on the next hole who saw the shot. The hole was playing 140 yards at the CCNC Cardinal course 7th hole. The pin was tucked behind a bunker with no room for error. Behind the shallow green was a significant drop-off. The shot had to be perfect; otherwise, you'd be in the bunker or over the green in a swale. The shot that I hit was perfect. I struck 8-iron with a slight draw that landed just short of the pin and rolled in. I didn't see the ball roll in the cup because the sun was also in my eyes, but I knew it was on a good line. As I approached the green, I didn't see any ball there. I then checked over the green and didn't see any ball there as well.

The Third One.

I then checked the hole, and sure enough, there was the ball. I yelled to the group in front of me and said, "Hole-in-one!" They said, "Yes, we saw that!" While the shot was the second-best executed shot of the three, it ranks third because I had nobody to celebrate with but a few strangers on the next hole. But a hole-in-one is a hole-in-one regardless of whether you have strangers or parents to celebrate it. Furthermore, I have a third favorite, hole-in-one, which is remarkable in itself.

Much like the parents with three perfect children, they have to pick their least favorite child. No parent will ever admit they have a least favorite child. I was able to pick a least favorite hole-in-one because a child is not a hole-in-one. While there are parallels to picking favorites of the group, they are not the same. One deals with life, while the other deals with a game. But it's often been said the game of golf is the game of life, it teaches you life lessons such as respect, etiquette and honesty. My parents taught me lessons valuable life lessons just like that. I'm their only child, so it goes without saying that I'm their favorite, so it should also go without saying that favorite hole-in-ones came with my parents.