All hole-in-ones are awesome, that much is undeniable. Aces are one of the game’s rarest outcomes, a feat worth celebrating irrespective of recipient, be they high-handicap hacker or top-10 player in the world.
But not all hole-in-ones are created equal. Some come in the company of friends and family. Some come after a lifetime of waiting. Some come when money is on the line. And some come with their very own trophy.
On Sunday at the Pelican Women’s Championship in Belleair, Florida, LPGA Tour pro Su Oh made a hole-in-one that might rank among the best in all of golf in the year 2021. And why is that? Well, because her hole-in-one came with a brand-new Lamborghini.
21 times a hole-in-one absolutely doesn’t count
The story begins on No. 12 at Pelican Golf Club, a 157-yard par-3 guarded by a large lake.
Oh, who was the first player off the back nine on Sunday morning, made her way to the 12th hole quickly. No one had seen the hole all day, let alone the tricky, front-right sucker pin, which was undoubtedly meant to goad players into losing their tee shots into the water.
Sitting near last-place among those who made the cut, Oh had nothing to lose. She grabbed a 7-iron, surveyed the shot, and decided to tempt fate.
The 25-year-old struck her tee shot well, watching as it soared through the sky on a perfect line with the flagstick. It dropped on the green, rolled toward the pin and … sunk! Oh threw her hands in the air, trading high-fives with her playing partners and caddies.
Oh’s excitement and surprise were clear in the moment. The ace moved her to 7 under on the week and further into the money (which, we hear, is a good thing). What wasn’t clear was whether she understood the magnitude of what had just happened. Through a deal with the tournament, each player to make an ace at the Pelican also earned an incredible trophy: a two-year lease on a brand-new Lamborghini Huracàn.
As it turns out, Oh isn’t the only player to leave Florida with a new ride. Two other players (Austin Ernst and Pavarisa Yoktuan) each won Lamborghinis for aces of their own on the 12th hole. The giveaway was part of a tournament sponsorship operated by Morgan Auto Group, a luxury car retailer with over 40 locations throughout Florida.
The car, which retails for upwards of $300,000, is widely regarded as one of the most elite sports cars in the world — earning accolades from Car and Driver for “acceleration that induces heart-palpitations” and its “undeniable pageantry. The supercar is one of the most expensive offerings at Morgan Auto Group, who was understandably dismayed by the development.
