In 2013, just 10 per cent of holes-in-one recorded in the BOSS Watches H1 Club were achieved by ladies – but, this year, a Weymouth woman beat the men to the punch by becoming the first member of the 2014 roll of honour.
The new season for the BOSS Watches H1 Club teed off on April 14 and Marilyn Wilson, 65, a member at Bridport & West Dorset Golf Club, was quick off the mark to record the first ace in the new campaign.
The 21-handicapper holed out on the 124-yard, par-three sixth at her home club, a spectacular cliff-top ‘links’ on the Jurassic Coast, overlooking Lyme Bay, to become the first recipient of a limited-edition timepiece from BOSS Watches, which has pledged to reward club golfers with a watch for every hole-in-one recorded during a club competition in 2014 after giving away £600,000-worth last year.
She said: “The sixth is the club’s signature hole on the cliff-edge and the green is about 100ft below the tee. My tee shot hit the bank and rolled in. My playing partners gave out such a huge cheer that, because of the layout, everybody on the course heard it, but they didn’t know who’d made it.
“A couple of ladies on the putting green said that I put them off but the bucks fizz afterwards made up for it.”
A retired maths teacher, Marilyn has been a member at Bridport & West Dorset for five years and this was her first hole-in-one in 20 years of trying.
She was followed quickly afterwards by 25-year-old Mark Semple, from Kilwinning, in north Ayrshire. His hole-in-one came at Rowallan Castle Golf & Country Club, 20 miles south-west of Glasgow, on the relatively young championship course designed by eight-time European number one and successful Ryder Cup captain Colin Montgomerie.
Mark, a 24-handicapper, made short work of the 149-yard par-three, eighth hole, with his trusty eight-iron.
He said: “I struck the ball really well and I knew my line was good. As the ball came down it went straight into the hole. It was a great feeling; I couldn’t believe it until I got to the hole and saw that my ball was in it.”
The reward scheme is open to any golfer whose club uses HowDidiDo – a free-to-use, web-based social network for golfers – and anybody playing in official club competitions is eligible. Currently, more than 1,800 clubs use the website.
Stephen Brydon, commercial director for MGS Distribution, the official licenced UK distributor for BOSS Watches, said: “Congratulations to Marilyn on becoming the first person this season to achieve golf’s Holy Grail of a hole-in-one.
“To the majority of amateur golfers, recording a hole-in-one will be the most memorable thing they achieve in golf – a once-in-a-lifetime experience probably – and we want to ensure they have much better memories than merely a dent in their bank balance after buying drinks in the clubhouse.
“The exclusive BOSS watch is available only to golfers who record a hole-in-one. It will provide a constant reminder of the achievement and also help to ensure they’re never late for a tee-time again.
“We also hope it might add a frisson of extra excitement to club competitions for golfers who may not be in with a chance of winning the event, for they know that every time they stand on the tee on a par-three, they are just one shot away from winning a stunning timepiece.”
In addition to the limited-edition watch, Wilson is also awarded membership of the exclusive BOSS Watches H1 Club which offers its members access to exclusive benefits and merchandise.
No extra registration is required to participate in the BOSS Watches promotion as all official club competitions are recorded on the HowDidiDo system, so holes-in-one are noted and automatically ratified by the golfer’s club.
GolfBlogger.co.uk 