SYDNEY, N.S. — In 20-plus years of playing golf, Adam Sams had never had a hole-in-one.
But he finally recorded one last Friday at his home course of Highlands Links in Cape Breton. And then he got another on Sunday. And another on Tuesday.
That’s three aces in five rounds over a span of five days for the 34-year-old from Ingonish, N.S.
“I wait 20-some-odd years to get one and then I get three in five days. It’s still hard to believe,” Sams said Wednesday afternoon.
“It’s a hole-in-one every second day.
“Expectations are high for me to get one” Thursday.
Sams’ first ace on the picturesque course came on the 171-yard 17th, known as Dowie Den. Playing with Malcolm Donovan, John Ashton and Andrew Huntington, Sams knocked a 9-iron shot into the cup.
“When I teed it up, I wasn’t really sure if it did go in,” Sams recalled.
“When I got up there, sure enough.”
On Sunday, Sams turned the trick on the 164-yard fifth hole, known as Canny Slap. He used a 9-iron and Andrew Huntington, Donald MacDougall and Joey MacDougall witnessed the shot.
“As soon as I hit it, Joey said, ‘It’s going in,’ ” Sams said.
He nearly had another on No. 17 later that day when his tee shot landed eight inches from the hole.
His third remarkable shot was on the 160-yard third hole, known as Lochan.
Sams smacked a pitching wedge. Witnesses of his third ace were Grant Hawley, Sheldon Whitty and Tony Whitty.
“It rolled right up into the hole,” Sams recalled.
“I just started shaking. It was unbelievable.”
According to Allan Zullo’s book Astonishing But True Golf Facts, mathematician Wally Etterbeek of California State University at Sacramento said to hit three aces in five rounds, “you would have to hit one shot on a par-3 hole every minute of every hour of every day — for 5,700 years.”
That puts the odds at 2,995,920,000 to 1.
Sams, who plays to a two handicap, said he “got off very easy” when it came to the time-honoured tradition of buying drinks in the clubhouse after getting a hole-in-one.
Sams shot a 4-over 76 on Friday and recorded consecutive 70s on Sunday and Tuesday.