NAPLES, Florida – John Nicholson and George Rand played in a foursome at The Glades Golf & Country Club last Thursday in Naples. Then something incredible happened.
The septuagenarians achieved a rare feat by sinking consecutive holes-in one on the 15th green of the Palmetto Course at the club. According to the National Hole in One Registry, the odds of two golfers hitting consecutive aces on the same hole are 17 million to one.
Rand said, “It is incredible.” “I’d rather win the lottery but I will take the hole in one.”
Nicholson is a 73-year old part-time resident of the Glades, originally from Lafayette, Indiana. He scored the first ace. Nicholson, who was third in the group that included Ed Quinn, Steve Gorski and others, lost sight of the drive on the 125 yard hole.
He said, “I didn’t know the ball was in play because I couldn’t even see it.” George took out his rangefinder and looked at the entire green. He said, “I don’t even see a golf ball.” I will congratulate you now.
The 71-year old Rand, who is a native of Massachusetts and spends 10 months of the calendar year in the Glades, then called his shot, la Babe Ruth.
Rand said: “I looked John in the eye and said, ‘You won’t get mad at you if I place this ball right on top of it, will you?’
The next thing that happened was a golfing wonder.
I was shouting all the way that “John, this is going into the hole.” Rand said, “It’s right at it.” “And it disappeared. We both jumped, we couldn’t imagine what happened. It’s quite remarkable.”
Rand’s third hole-in one was his first at Glades. Nicholson’s previous hole-in one was on No. 16 said that he asked everyone to sign his golf ball as a souvenir.
He said, “I told them that they would always be in my mind.”
Two more long-shots aces
Last Saturday, at Hunters Ridge Golf & Country Club near Bonita Springs, Ken McConnaghay & Wayne Reese both scored holes-in one in consecutive groups.
Trip Stracka, assistant director of Golf at the club, said that this was a first.
McConnaughay’s ace was made on the 120-yard fifth hole using a 4-iron hybrid, in front of his playing partners Stu Miller, Norm Jalbert and Omer peak.
Reese then aced the No. Dr. Lou Degennaro and Jim Fitzpatrick, as well as Wayne Slabach, witnessed Reese’s 5-iron hybrid.
