LIGHTNING struck twice for a Coventry golfer who achieved the near impossible by making not one but two holes-in-one in the same round.
Steve Haymes struck two aces at Coventry Hearsall Golf Club – the odds of which are estimated to be 67million to one.
The 53-year-old, who plays off an 8.5 Handicap Index, was out playing socially with fellow members Andy Thompson and James Charlton when he achieved something most amateur golfers could only dream of.
On the par-three seventh hole, Steve hit an eight-iron towards the elevated green, on which the hole cannot be seen from a distance – which is when he realised he’d made his first ever hole-in-one after 40 years of playing.
He said: “I thought I’d taken too much club, so I didn’t realise it had gone in until we got up there.”
Ten holes later, lightning struck again on the par-three 17th, where he hit a seven-iron that rolled perfectly into the cup.
“I caught it really well and we all watched as it tracked straight to the hole,” said Steve.
“In 40 years of playing, I’ve never had a hole-in-one, so to make two in the same round left us all stunned.”
Steve, who first picked up golf at the age of 13 before returning to the game at 35, has been a member at Coventry Hearsall for the past nine years. Away from playing, he has also lent his skills as a floor fitter to help fit out the club’s new Swing Room and men’s locker area.
England Golf Championships Director James Crampton said: “The odds of two aces in a round are estimated to be 67million to one, so Steve’s achievements are astonishing, especially considering he’d not had a hole in one before, let alone making two!”
