With so many money-related stories in golf with the news of the stunning partnership between the PGA Tour and LIV Golf it’s nice to come across a tale of a junior golfer just playing for the joy of the game. Actually, this isn’t quite that tale, either.
Introducing 16-year-old amateur Chloe Vereen, a promising Aussie player with a 1-handicap, according to our friends at Australian Golf Digest. Chloe was playing in the Isuzu Southwest Open, a pro-am at Bunbury Golf Club, on Tuesday when magic struck. Well, she struck a magical 7-iron, that is, from 137 meters (150 yards) that found the bottom of the cup on the par-3 17th hole for an ace. But wait, it gets better!
Not only was the hole-in-one caught on camera, but it came with a prize. A big prize as you can guess by the tournament’s sponsor. That’s right, an Isuzu. An Isuzu D-Max Ute valued at $60,000, in fact. Not bad for your first car, huh? And as you can imagine, young Chloe was pretty darn excited about the whole situation. Watch as she sprints to the green to confirm it’s in the hole before celebrating (at the end of the video you can also see a replay of her golf ball rolling into the hole):
“I WON A CAR!” Yep, you did, Chloe. Well done.
And for those of you wondering, yes, she’s allowed to keep the prize and retain her amateur status. In recent years, the USGA (rightly) relaxed its rules revolving around hole-in-one prizes.
So have a day, Chloe. And enjoy the new ride. Just remember to obey the speed limit out there.