Pro Makes Hole-In-One On Par 4 In PGA Tour Monday Qualifier
Young South African golfer, Aldrich Potgieter, achieved a rare golfing feat after he made a hole-in-one on a 345-yard par 4.
Potgieter achieved the feat while competing at the Monday qualifier for the John Deere Classic which takes place on the PGA Tour this week.
Standing on the 17th hole at Pinnacle Country Club in Milan, Illinois, the big-hitting 18-year-old smashed his driver over the dogleg-right and, initially, thought nothing of it. It was only as his caddie celebrated from the fairway that he began to realise what he had accomplished, as he explained afterwards.
"That was really exciting, and it was kind of a weird moment,” Potgieter said.
"I didn't see it go in, so I didn't know. It was kind of a blind tee shot, but when I saw my caddie run out to the fairway and was pumping up his arms and going wild, I thought it was probably like a foot or two.
"And he said no, it was in the hole. So it wasn't like a hole-in-one you see on a par 3 and you go wild with the crowd. It was kind of a quiet moment to yourself where you're like, 'I still can't believe that happened.'"
There remains only one hole-in-one on a par 4 recorded in PGA Tour history when Andrew Magee holed out on the 17th hole at the 2001 Phoenix Open.
Unfortunately, for the young professional, despite the albatross coming in a five-hole stretch where he made a 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5, his six-under-par score wasn't enough to make it through Monday qualifying, with the South African falling one shot short of the John Deere Classic on Thursday.
Regardless, it is clear that Potgieter, who last year became the second youngest winner of the Amateur Championship with victory at Royal Lytham and St Annes, has a bright future in the sport.
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Last month at the US Open at Los Angeles Country Club, the South African made the cut, finishing 64th after a final round 79.
The South African's driving ability was also on display at LACC, as he topped the driving distance standings for the tournament. Potgieter averaged a mammoth 336 yards off the tee, putting him more than 10 yards clear of fellow big-hitter Bryson DeChambeau and four yards clear of Min Woo Lee, who was second with an average of 332 yards.
Following his performance at the US Open, the South African turned professional. He recently missed the cut at the Rocket Mortgage Classic after shooting +2 in his first two rounds.