August 21, 2023 will forever remain engraved in the memory of two septuagenarian golfers. François Chartrand and Roger Giroux achieved a real feat on the greens of the Vallée du Richelieu Golf Club. In the same quartet, they each achieved a very rare hole-in-one at two different pennants during the same round.
The probabilities of this series of events making everyone dream of fans of the little white ball?
Infinitesimals.
Because considering that an average golfer has a one in 12,000 chance of achieving a hole-in-one, we must multiply the probabilities. Each of the successes is independent, has already explained the mathematician and statistician, Maxime Guy, when The newspaper contacted him to explain the chances of a golfer from Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu having scored an ace on three different cards in 37 days. The following season, it was the turn of a golfer from the Laurentians to match this feat.
According to statistics from the American organization National Hole-in-One Registry, which compiles data across the planet, the odds of two golfers in the same group achieving a hole-in-one at the same place are 17 million against a.
A first surprise
This time, the two members of the prestigious Club de la Vallée-du-Richelieu, located in Sainte-Julie, accomplished quite a feat on the magnificent Rouville course.
As a bonus, the first to arrive there, at the fourth flag, looked like Babe Ruth before setting off. Author of three holes-in-one in his life, Roger Giroux, 77, joked to his playing companions that he had scored his last “1” on this same hole while the pennant was placed at the same location.
As the “Bambino” did when he came to the plate at the time, Mr. Giroux pointed to his target.
“I told them that I could prove that it wasn’t just luck, but above all a question of skill,” he said on the phone in a discussion with The newspaper.
“We never saw the ball fall into the hole, because it was hidden behind the slope and a pit. It was once I arrived on the green that I walked towards the hole and saw the ball there. It was quite a surprise. I had played a prank which came to fruition,” he exclaimed.
Golfer Roger Giroux scored his fourth hole-in-one ever on the Rouville course at the Vallée du Richelieu Golf Club.
Courtesy Alain Jean
The little white girl disappears
Two hours later, François Chartrand imitated him at 10e165 yards long.
Unlike its companion, the group saw the ball land just in front of the green and roll to the flag before disappearing.
In more than 55 years of practice, it was the first hole-in-one for the now 79-year-old playing between 120 and 150 rounds per year.
“The feeling is incredible. I had not lost hope, but it had been so close to returning so often that I told myself that it would happen one day,” recounted the friendly golfer who had witnessed the moments of glory of three friends at the Vallée du Richelieu.
Never seen
Data from the National Hole-in-One Registry indicates that golfers who achieve a hole-in-one do so after an average of 24 years of practice. Additionally, 60% of aces are made by golfers aged 50 and over.
Roger Giroux and François Chartrand celebrated their feat in style late in the afternoon on August 21 at the Vallée du Richelieu Golf Club.
Courtesy Alain Jean
Around bottles of champagne and other glasses at 19e At the end of the day, the guests were not necessarily talking about one or the other of the achievements, but rather about the probabilities of counting two in the same quartet.
According to club records reviewed by a friend, this has never happened since the club opened in 1966. It now has around 1,100 members.
This season alone, he has recorded 28 aces. Of the lot, Marcel Émond achieved a sixth in four years!
1 hole-in-one is scored every 3,500 rounds of golf
Odds of a hole-in-one by a pro: 1 in 3,000
Odds of a player hitting 2 holes in one in the same round: 67 million to 1
14% of aces are achieved by women
Most popular clubs: 7-iron and 8-iron (14% each)
57% of holes-in-one are made by golfers with an average handicap index (10 to 19)
A hole in one on a par 5!
It has been performed 5 times in history according to English records.
5 golfers would have achieved the ultimate feat.
The first dates back to 1962, over a distance of 480 yards. Larry Bruce had taken a shortcut by flying over trees on a crooked hole at the Hope Country Club in Arkansas.
*According to the National Hole-in-One Registry
**According to PGA of America