In their first nine-hole match on the front side, JD and Jack played well but lost. The clubs JD used were nice, but adjustments were needed. The pair were 1-up in the second nine-hole match when they got to the 16th tee.
The 16th hole played 190 yards from the white tees with the pin in the back that day. Bunkers are on both sides of the green, with a fall-off around the back and the left side.
The front of the putting surface is open, allowing shots to run up to the two-tiered green. There is a bowl in the narrow front and a much wider plateau in the back part of the green.
JD hit a 6-iron, and he hit it well. He told me he “flushed it.” Witnesses confirmed the ball landed short of the pin, took a hop, and slammed into the jar. But the golf ball rattled out, came to rest on the lip of the cup, and then, after a moment, fell back into the cup—big, cliffhanger drama.
The 16th hole is visible from several other holes at Sara Bay. People on the 17th tee and those on the 11th green and the 12th tee are nearby. You can see the 16th green from the 2nd green, the 13th green, the 14th tee, and the 15th green.
It was a stage for many people to hear and see the shot. And even if they did not see the actual shot, they knew something extraordinary happened.
High fives, backs slapped, and huge smiles. An ace is unique, and seeing one in person never gets old. Jack and JD were now two up in the match with two to play.
JD told me he got distracted by his first hole-in-one. His mind wandered. Jack had his first hole-in-one less than a year earlier, and the two low-handicap golfers previously thought they might never make one. Now they did, and it felt great. They were thrilled for each other.
But they lost the next two holes and halved the match. The good news was JD’s clubs finally reached the golf course.