Not like a flying brick – Pencil in a Moleskine Sketchbook

This is my entry for this month’s Challenge. It shows me, many, many years ago achieving what many golfers never do – two strokes on a par 5 hole. Lots of fellow players “achieve holes in one” at par 3 holes; this is called an “eagle” but few ever manage one better – an “albatross or double eagle”.

I was playing in a knock-out competition and was 4 up with 4 to play when we reached this par 5. My opponent had to win every hole to even tie the round and all I needed was a half, at any of the remaining holes, to win. My opponent was really fed up and had threatened to concede the match and walk in but I wanted to continue as I was having fun. I decided to play badly to extend the match and deliberately pushed my drive into long grass. It was debatable whether I could actually hit my next shot as I had difficulty seeing the ball. I swung slowly and an incredible thing happened. The ball shot out towards the distant green, 230 yards away, in the same way as a brick doesn’t. After, what seemed like an eternity, it reached the putting surface, ran across the green and dropped into the hole. The match was conceded and we walked in with my opponent muttering words like, “jammy b….” in true sportsmanship.

I’ve never repeated this feat. I suspect the golfing gods were just being kind to me that day ensuring that, as I tried to emulate the shot many times, I would keep playing for the rest of my life. This happened a long time ago – nearly 40 years. When I am awake, in the wee small hours, I sometimes play the shot over and over again in my mind and wonder if it actually happened.

Since it was so long ago I’ve drawn this in black and white.