Jeff Gill (left), from Warrnambool, and Gavan Nunn, from Port Fairy, were two of three competitors to shoot an ace in the space of 10 minutes.
The chances of a person sinking a hole-in-one are rare.
What’s even rarer is three people scoring an ace in the space of 10 minutes.
That’s exactly what happened at the Rotary Club of Warrnambool East Hole-In-One competition on the Warrnambool foreshore last week.
On Tuesday evening, Port Fairy’s Gavin Nunn and Warrnambool’s Jeff Gill and Troy McCormack all lined up to test their skill at the annual charity event.
What happened next was something no one could have predicted.
Mr Nunn was first to secure a hole-in-one after hitting a sweet pitching wedge shot.
“The bloke next to me said, ‘I think that went in’,” Mr Nunn said. “So we checked and sure enough it had.
“It was a bit of a weird feeling, I was stunned.
“Five minutes later one of the other guys got theirs and then there was another one two minutes later.”
Both Mr Nunn and Mr Gill are regulars on the golf course but had never experienced a one-shot hole.
“I’ve been playing golf for about seven years and I’ve never actually seen a hole-in-one happen before,” Mr Gill said.
“I couldn’t believe it — not only getting one myself, but seeing two others all in such a short space of time.
“It just happened that quick. I can’t really remember what the shot was like.”
Rotary club organising committee member Ian Heard said he had never seen anything like it since the competition began nine years ago.
“It’s just one of those flukey things,” he said.
“It’s always exciting when someone gets a hole-in-one, but to have three in 10 minutes, that was something else.”
Mr Heard said there had been nine holes-in-one scored since the competition began on Boxing Day, up on last year’s total of seven.
“We might have to put a bit of plastic over the hole. It’s costing us a fortune,” Mr Heard joked.
“There has been more people coming down to have a go this year, which is marvellous.”
The daily competition runs until Australia Day. All daily nearest-the-pin and hole-in-one winners will return for the final on January 27, when they will shoot off for a chance to win a new car.