For most club golfers with a mid range handicap, eagles are pretty rare beasts, but one amateur player can now boast having gone one shot better – twice – and in the space of 24 hours.
John Murphy, who plays off a handicap of 12.6, was on his annual trip to Marbella when he made his albatrosses, which are also known as double eagles.
“We’ve played golf in the Marbella area for last 30 years in groups varying from eight to 16 usually in March for the Doyler Trophy in memory of one of our departed colleagues, Frank Doyle,” said a jubilant Murphy.
“We played in San Roque on the first day with a larger society well known to many Irish golfers – The Hogan Hackers from the Hogan Stand pub in San Pedro.
“On day three we played Santana and I had the good fortune of an albatross on the 10th hole, which measures 425 metres and my card signed by Captain Jeff Brownlow.
“The following day we played El Paraiso and I had the same score to the astonishment of all at the 447-metre 15th with my card signed by Cathal Muckian, the former Irish soccer international.”
Murphy may want to retire his TaylorMade Stealth Plus driver and matching 3-hybrid after making his twos – or he might be hoping to make it hat-trick when his returns to Spain next year.
Depending on where you look, you might see the odds of making a score of three-under-par on a hole as 6,000,000 (six million) to one, although they do pop up on the professional circuits from time to time.
The Masters at Augusta National has witnessed four during its history, the most recent coming at the par-5 2nd in 2012, when Louis Oosthuizen holed a 4-iron with his second shot from 253 yards.
Earlier this year, Yuka Saso carded an albatross on the second hole during her second round at the Drive On Championship.
Saso holed out from 217 yards with her second shot, her hybrid effort landing on the green perfectly before rolling in for what’s generally regarded as ‘golf’s rarest of birds’.
