Peter's Just Ace...

What’s that famous old saying about London buses? You wait and wait at the bus stop forever and then three of them arrive at once? The same could be said of Forest Park Golf Club member Peter Amphlett about holes-in-one. Most golfers wait forever and never see one. But in just a four- month spell of 2021 Peter bagged three aces, having never seen one drop before. The 66-year-old York resident had been a ‘casual’ golfer, enjoying pay- and-play rounds across the country until he retired and joined Forest Park in 2018. Playing off an index of 22.1, the first of Peter’s hole-outs came at Forest Park’s 181-yard 4th on April 27th. The others followed on June 15th and August 24th and both were at the 16th, which is stroke index 7 and plays 200 yards from the whites and 172 from the yellows. On all occasions, he used his trusty Callaway Rogue driver and on the first occasion thought he must have driven it through the back of the green. Nope, it was in the hole.

And if that was a stroke of luck, so was returning to the clubhouse to stand the traditional round of drinks – only to find that the place was virtually empty. “It was a horrible cold day and at the time we were only allowed table service outside!” He celebrated with a pint alongside playing partner and ‘witness’ Ray Alderson. It was a different story when ace number two disappeared below ground however. On that occasion a generous Peter put £100 behind the bar to cover the drinks, but that time only got £7 change! By the third hole-in-one, and now something of an old hand at the hole-in-one business, he bought the tradi- tional bottle of whisky. He laughs at the ‘expectation’ every time he tees it up now, and even when speaking to Yorkshire Golfer in October he was still getting congratulations – but then again three aces in four months is pretty special. It’s doubtful that even Tiger, Bryson and their multi-millionaire compatriots have managed such a stellar feat.