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Lac La Biche golfer Greg Zevola watched as his nine-iron tee shot on the 152-yard eighth hole of the Lac La Biche golf course was held up and pushed right of the green by strong winds from the lake. He continued to watch as his ball bounced out of sight onto the green-side hill.
His teammates at the Canada Day Hole-in-One tournament were near their golf carts, talking to another group of golfers in the event that drew 120 players to the course, all looking for that one shot.
“I think I was the only one watching it,” said Zevola, as his Callaway ball rolled back into view on the front of the green.
Quiet for much of the 12 holes already played, Zevola’s reaction as he watched his ball roll to the pinwas equally calm.
“Holy (#*@!) boys. I think it went in the hole,” he said with little emotion on his face.
Two teammates went to check.
Then it was high-fives and smiles all around. For the next six holes and back at the clubhouse for the prize presentations, Zevola took congratulations from other golfers in person and on his cell phone.
The young golfer said he has only been out a handful of rounds this year, despite being a fan of the game and a supporter of the course.
“I’ve got my membership here, but I’ve only been out six times.”
The seventh time was a charm, as he joins Sobey’s patriarch Kelly Abougouche and Post publisher Rob McKinley — who was also a member of Zevola’s team this year — to score an ace at the tourney.
Zevola didn’t say how he would spend his $2,500 prize, a store-wide gift certificate from Lac La Biche’s Marczak’s True Value hardware store. True Value was one of 36 hole sponsors for the tournament, which saw all fairways reduced to 150-yard par 3s, with two holes on every green, and $100 for golfers coming closest to either marker.
“Without all the support and all the sponsors, we couldn’t do this tournament,” said Lac La Biche Golf Club head pro Lance Palmaruk, as he handed out prizes and gave Zevola a Hole-in-One plaque to mount his winning ball.
