Those who play golf know that not everyone can be a Tiger Woods.
However, most casual and amateur golfers still hope for those flashes of brilliance, like a shooting star, that makes them feel like a champ. Sort of like managing to sink a basket from half-court even if you’re no Stephen Curry. It may only happen once in your life and it could be a fluke but the fact that it happened at all is cause enough for celebration.
For one great-grandfather, he had to wait 70 years for his moment of brilliance when he managed to sink a hole-in-one for the first time in his life.
Meet this man who got his first hole in one at age 81 in the video below.
[rumble video_id=v5jwhy domain_id=u7nb2]
Video credit: Rumble
It was a fitting accomplishment for 81-year-old Edward Grierson whose first job was collecting golf balls on Routenburn Golf Club, Largs, North Ayrshire, when he was 11 years old. No doubt his exposure at the golf course, where his uncle was the head greenkeeper, fueled his interest in the sport and he soon took it up.
But despite decades of teeing off, he had never managed to score a hole-in-one until last week.
Edward, from East Kilbride, South Lanarkshire, was surprised but delighted at having achieved the feat as he was playing with a handicap of 16.
The great-grandfather-of-three was playing with a friend at the Torrance House Golf Club when he made the 174-yard par 3 15th hole in one stroke. At first, he was so surprised that he didn’t realize what had happened.
Edward said: “I hadn’t realized it had gone in the hole.
“I thought I’d hit through the green, then my partner realized it wasn’t there and it was in the hole.
“I was delighted – it was absolutely the perfect shot.
“It’s the sort of thing I’ve done before, got to the green and hoping it was in the hole and realized it had gone past the green.
“Strangely enough I played the senior open the other day and just missed the same pin and finished through the green.
“You can hardly script it, it was so close.”
Although he eventually lost the round to his friend, he felt like a winner anyway.
Edward has been a member of the golf club for the past 20 years. He was the senior champion in 2004 and even won three medals at the club in the past few weeks. But the hole-in-one was his most momentous shot ever.
He would have gone for a celebratory drink then and there but the drink-drive laws in Scotland meant he had to wait before enjoying that celebratory tipple.
Edward said: “Nowadays you rarely do because so many people go by car and drinking could be detrimental to your license, so you just don’t touch it.
“It’s typical of golf clubs nowadays, but I’m sure I’ll celebrate properly at some point.
“It was nice to get all the handshakes when I get back to the clubhouse.
“I’ll go on as long as I’m fit to go on and still manage to play.”
Replaced!