In Memory of Daddy: A Tale of One Golf Ball

 

Daddy began playing golf in the mid-1960s after he went to work for Dow Chemical.  An abiding story in our family involves Daddy making a hole-in-one at a Dow Chemical golf tournament.  Daddy came home with a hole-in-one trophy.  It was a big deal—Daddy made a hole-in-one and came home with a trophy.  I related that legendary story—Daddy shot a hole-in-one, Daddy came home with a trophy--when talking with golf players for the decades after it happened.  I still tell it. 

However, the larger story only came to light to us children after Daddy went to the great golf course in the sky on January 16, 2022.  In going through his stuff, his wife found the publicity associated with that famous hole-in-one.  It included a newspaper clipping which we had never seen, or remember seeing.  The clipping includes a clearly posed picture of Daddy beside the hole scratching his head as if in bemusement.  As it turns out, one hole was designated as the prize hole, and no one had made a hole-in-one on the prize hole before Daddy.  A few years ago, Daddy related that he hit the ball and his partner said that he thought the ball went in the hole.  Understandably, Daddy was skeptical.  Yet indeed, he did score that hole-in-one and brought home a trophy!

Daddy played golf until his eyesight failed.  When we visited home, we would ride in the cart with Daddy.  Depending on how well he hit the ball, he might even let us keep score.