Chasing Aces: How Hard is the Golf Hole In One?
People play golf for a lot of reasons, whether a casual foursome with friends or the competition against one’s self in a game that cannot be won. No matter why they play, every golfer knows the excitement of a short par three and the pursuit of golf’s holy grail: the hole in one.
The ace is golf's built-in lottery system – equal parts luck and fortune, and seemingly doled out at random. But you can't win if you don't play. Gary Player said it best with one of our favorite golf quotes: "The more I practice, the luckier I get."
At Great Golf Memories, we’ve been tracking these feats on our National Hole-in-One Registry since 2002. Over nearly two decades, we’ve recorded nearly 100,000 aces and compiled some incredible statistics about the golf hole in one. So if you’re curious to know just how lucky one has to be to accomplish this feat, you’ve come to the right place. We’ll review the odds of getting a hole in one, some fun statistics about when and how they are accomplished, and some truly incredible records from the world of golf.
What Are the Odds of a Golf Hole in One?
Hole-in-ones might be rare to you or me, but when we zoom out to see the bigger picture, they are happening constantly. Golf is gaining worldwide popularity, and with increased play comes more aces than ever. So for those numerically-minded among you, we present the most interesting hole-in-one statistics to spark hope that one day, you'll be counted alongside the lucky.
Hole in One Odds for Each Type of Golfer
It might come as no surprise that a professional golfer has better odds to score a hole in one than your everyday hacker. But the odds aren’t drastically different. In fact, per these stats, an average player has odds that are only four times as long as the pro.
An average golfer has a 12,000 to 1 chance of a hole in one, while a low handicapper has a 5,000 to 1 chance. The plus handicapper has the best odds of 3,000 to 1.
Per the above, a plus handicap player is four times more likely to hit a hole-in-one than your middle handicap player. To put that in perspective, if the average plus handicapper hits 72 shots per round, that’s one ace for every 216,000 swings.
What Are the Hardest Holes in One?
The longest odds in the hole in one cannon are one player making two hole in ones in the same round, which is a one in 67 million chance. In a rather distant second, two players from the same foursome acing the same hole is 17 million to one.
Fun Hole in One Statistics
There are approximately 450 million rounds of golf played each year in the United States alone. The average golf course will host about 30,000 rounds per year, but only report around 15 holes in ones per year. That means only one fifth of one percent of rounds played will experience an ace. It makes sense when you consider the fact that only 1–2% of golfers score a hole-in-one in a given year.
Hole-in-One Demographics
Average years of playing is 24
Average handicap of golfers making hole-in-one is 14
Age group that makes the most hole-in-ones is 50-59 (25%) and the next highest is 40-49 (24%)
Ball used most often is Titleist (45%), Nike (14%), and Top Flite (11%)
Hole-in-One Facts for women
16% of hole-in-ones are made by women
Average age is 55
Average years of playing is 15
Average hole length is 111 yards
The infographic below shows all of the statistical rarities that we’ve compiled around the hole in one, thanks to our stat keepers at National Hole in One Registry.
Legendary Hole-in-One Feats
While your chances of scoring a hole in one might seem long, others are either born lucky or have something else to credit as their ace in the hole. Take for example these selections from our National Hole In One Registry’s hole-in-one records that will live on forever.
Two Hole-in-Ones in the Same Round
Gregory P. Shaughnessy of Rockville Centre, NY
Gregory P. Shaughnessy, a guest of Ryan Byrne and playing with Joe Alduino, successfully holed out on the 5th and 10th holes at Rockville Links Golf Club on August 27th, 2016. He used a 7 iron on the 135 yard 5th, and a 9 iron on the 105 yard 10th. Shaughnessy did this despite limping due to a sliced foot, and also dealing with a lower back injury.
Five Hole-in-Ones on the Same Hole
Mark Briggs of Perth, Australia
Between 1990 to 2015, Mark Briggs made 5 hole-in-one on the 130 yard 7th hole of the Dunes course at Joondalup Country Club in Perth, Australia. He achieved these feats in 1990, 2001, 2004, 2005, and 2015.
Family Hole-In-One
Michael, Celia, and Aaron Neff of Carthage, IL
On April 17, 1988 Michael Neff carded a hole-in-one on the 2nd hole at Carthage Golf Club in Carthage, IL with a pitching wedge from 140 yards. 15 months later on July 17 1989, his wife, Celia Neff, also hit a hole-in-one on the exact same hole with a 5 iron. Incredibly, 14 years later on August 27, 2003, the couple’s son, Aaron Neff, also hit a hole-in-one on the 2nd hole with a pitching wedge.
Father / Daughter Hole-In-One
Bill Corcoran and Donna Summers of Laguna Beach, CA
On January 14, 2011, Bill Corcoran carded a hole-in-one on the 17th hole at Sunrise Country Club in Rancho Mirage, CA with an 8 iron from 132 yards . Six years later on May 26, 2017, his daughter, Donna Summers, also hit a hole-in-one on the exact same hole with a 7 iron from 134 yards.
Mother / Son Hole-In-One
Ann Fromer and Tony Fromer of Palm Beach, FL
On November 21, 2010, Ann Fromer carded a hole-in-one on the 4th hole at the Brian Silva course at Palm Beach Country Club with a 7-iron from 114 yards. Four holes later, her son Tony Fromer, who was playing alongside, also hit a hole-in-one on the 8th hole with a 5-iron from 205 yards.
Hole-in-Ones Spanning 4 Generations
Greg Driscoll, Mary Rose Heil, Jane Stuckenschneider, and Jill Stuckenschneider of Missouri
In 1951, Greg Driscoll carded a hole-in-one on the 3rd hole at Triplele A Golf Club in St. Louis, MO. 24 years later in 1975, his daughter, Mary Rose Heil hit the next one on the 16th hole at Greenbriar Hills CC in Kirkwood, MO. Then, in 2006 her granddaughter, Jill Stuckenschneider got hers on the 8th hole at Blue Hills CC in Overland Park, KS. Finally in 2016, Jill’s mother, Jane Stuckenschneider closed the loop with one on the 2nd hole at Pheasant Run in O’Fallon, MO. This is our only known record of a family with 4 generations of hole-in-ones.
How to Celebrate a Hole-in-One
We've gone in depth about how to properly celebrate an ace before, but this is something that always bears reminding: write it down. Making a hole-in-one is understandably the rush of a lifetime, especially if it's your first, but the more information you take note of at the time, the more you'll be able to remember in the future.
Here’s what you should do immediately after your hole in one:
Mark it down on your scorecard! A good scorecard will ensure that you know the course name, hole number, yardage, par, and even date!
Keep the ball (sign it, mark it with #1, just don't lose it!)
Take a picture! We all have phones, so there's no excuse.
Write down the club used.
Take note of other small details: foursome names, weather, time of day. You never know how sentimental the moment will be for your friends and family!
If you noticed in the records section, there is an incredible amount of detail to back up the hole-in-ones. That's because there are resources where you can register your ace for the world to see. The National Hole-in-One Registry is a free online resource dedicated to keeping track of aces from around the globe. With over 90,000 recorded hole-in-ones and counting, the National Hole-in-One Registry allows you to keep a permanent record of all the above metrics for posterity's sake (and bragging rights too).