Kimiko Akimoto’s sunglasses obscured her vision on the seventh hole.
The 59-year-old Williamsburg resident launched a tee shot to the left of the pin on the par-3 seventh at Columbia Golf and Country Club in Claverak, New York. She and her playing partner Chris Eugin were competing in the 2018 Ladies Invitational on Monday, and Eugin was exclaiming, “It went in Kimiko.”
“Yeah, sure,” Akimoto said. “I never believed it.”
Sure enough, her ball was in the hole when she walked up to the green. Akimoto hit a 6 iron 130 yards left of the hole and it rolled in. Her first thought was what to submit for the closest to the pin leaderboard. “Do I put zero? In the hole?” said Akimoto, who won a $20 gift certificate to the pro shop for being closest to the pin.
It was the first hole-in-one for Akimoto in six years of seriously playing golf. The Beaver Brook Golf Course member took up the game after her children left for college.
“We were thinking maybe we’d have a drink afterwards (to celebrate),” Akimoto said.
They still had the rest of the two-ball best-ball tournament to play after the once-in-a lifetime occurrence.
She struggled to calm her nerves, badly shanking her drive on par-4 No. 8. She made a seven on that hole.
On the par-3 17th, Akimoto was the last to hit. She pulled a 7 iron and hit right of the pin. Her entire foursome watched the ball roll into the cup 125 yards away for her second ace of the round. A few maintenance workers around the hole screamed.
“I couldn’t believe it,” Akimoto said.
Akimoto brought three balls to the tournament. She set aside both of the ones she hit the holes-in-one with.
She and Eugin shot an 83 together for the tournament.
Eugin has never had a hole-in-one, but has been a witness on four of them.
“Her luck may have played a part,” Akimoto said.
Linda Haskell and Linda Petrozzi also witnessed the shots.