Harris English just accomplished one of the rarest feats in golf at this week’s Players Championship: holing out from the fairway on a par 5 for a 2.
That’s an albatross — three under par on a single hole — and they happen a lot less frequently than golf’s other great achievement, the ace.
An ace, in fact, is the only other way to get an albatross. In order to get to three under par on a single hole, you’d have to hole it from the tee on a par 4.
English — a 29-year-old Tour veteran — was one over par when he reached the par-5 11th hole. The hole was playing 539 yards long on Thursday, and English hit his drive into the right side of the fairway and was left with 236 yards to the pin.
English pulled a long iron and hit a perfect shot over the water to the front of the green. The ball landed softly and rolled out a few feet, straight into the hole.
In the span on one shot, English went from one over par on the day to two under par with seven holes to play — not a bad way to make up some strokes!
English has two PGA Tour victories on his resume, the most recent of which was the 2014 OHL Classic at Mayakoba. His best finish so far this season is T12 at the Honda Classic.
The Players Championship has not been kind to English in recent years. His best finish is T33, and that was back in 2013. He’s missed the cut every year since. Maybe this good luck will be just what he needs to turn things around this year.
You can watch a full video of his sensational shot below.
? ALBATROSS! ?@Harris_English holes it from 236 yards! ??
The rarest of birds on No. 11 @THEPLAYERSChamp.#LiveUnderPar pic.twitter.com/Y7WYwZOjRh
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 14, 2019