Our usual foursome was unavailable on the 4th of July holiday weekend. Family duties had kept me off the golf course for nearly a month, so I drove to Brandon, SD, to play Hidden Valley, a par-3 course on Saturday. I was playing solo and got to the 9th hole. I waited a couple minutes for a pair of teenage boys to putt out. The ninth at Hidden Valley is 130 yards with a slightly elevated green. July 5th was a hot and muggy morning. The ball wasn’t flying as far. I typically hit my 8 about 140. Three holes before on another 130-yard hole, I hit a nice 8 iron to ten feet. On nine, I pulled the 8 again. Teed up my Titleist yellow 4 ball. Struck it clean. High arc. First bounce caught a slight downslope that angled it right and toward the cup. I watched the flagpole tremor, then heard the clink of the ball hitting the pole. One of the teens, Oliver, was watching. From the tee box, Oliver’s reaction confirmed what I hoped: “HEY! HE MADE IT!” My first hole-in-one. Despite the excitement, I have to admit feeling a little sheepish about it. You’ll notice from the photo, it’s one of those extra wide holes. Hidden Valley has them on 9 and 18. Still, Oliver and Augie, the witnesses, were excited. The clubhouse attendant said,” Yeah, but it’s still pretty cool.” And all my golfing buddies agree it still counts. Plus, knowing it hit the cup dead center by rattling the pin, gives me comfort that even if the hole was regulation, it may well have gone in.