HOLES IN ONE

Opunake Times, 12 January 1934, Page 3

HOLES IN ONE

TWICE IN MATCH.

THEN LOSES CHAMPIONSHIP

The unprecedented feat of holing in one stroke on two occasions in a golf championship was accomplished recently by Eric liddian, of Stourbridge, 23 years of age, while he was playing in the final for the Irish amateur title, at Newcastle, County Down. Even so, he was beaten three and two by J. McLean, a Glasgow youth, 22 years of age, who won the title for the second year in succession. McLean, who is also the Scottish champion, is one of the greatest amateur golfers Great Britain has yet produced. Eiddiau was the English native champion last year. Eiddiau’s fiist hole in one was at the seventh, which measures 128 yards. For the tee shot he took "a mashie-niblick. The ball, dropping a foot from the hole, performed a couple of hops and fell in. Eiddiau finished the round two down, but, winning three of the first tour holes in the second round by brilliant play, he took the lead" It was short-lived however, for when the players came to the 14th, where Eiddiau accomplished his next hole in one, he was three down. This is a hole of 250 yards, and playing the tee shot with a number 2 iron, Eiddian dropped the ball about six yards from the flag. To the astonishment of players and spectators, the ball, rolling on and on towards the hole, toppled in. Feat Never Equalled,

. Even Alec Herd, who holds tire World’s record for the number of holes in one —19—has never achieved the feat twice in the same day. An American admirer lias undertaken to present Herd with a putter in solid gold, when he secures his twentieth hole in one.

So far as championships are concerned, Fiddiau's feat has never been equalled, though theie are a number of recorded cases where a player has holed in one twice in the same round. The most recent instance is that of Major It. A. Crystal, who, on the Callander course, Perthshire, did the 11th (154 yards) and the 15th .(105 yards) each in one stroke. A Cambridge blue, J. 1. Ireland, playing at the lloyal AVorlington end Newmarket course on October ;j } 1907, in a three ball match, holed his toe shut at the sth and 18th holes.

But the most remarkable feat of all was that of Alex. But hie, professional at the Vancouver ( uuntry Club, who did two suc- < Dssive holes each in one, the first

a. full iron and the second a full ! assie shot of 200 yards. Of the few instances of two players halving: the same hole in ■ ne*, a feat ag’ainst which the odds S ave been calculated at the fantastic figure of 10,000 to one, there is that of Miss O. Clutterbrck and Mrs H. M. Robinson, v- in holed their tee shots at the lo.h hole 1120 yards) on the 3t. Augustine’s course, near Rains- -'• de, on May 8. 1925.