Amazing two aces in one round a fluke says golfer

He overcame odds of 67 million to one, but Kaipara man Val Sills reckons his amazing golfing feat of two-holes-in-one in one round was more fluke than skill.

But the 74-year-old, who achieved the extremely rare double at the Northern Wairoa Golf Club's club day on Saturday, expects his achievement to get New Zealand's golf community buzzing.

And it has with Northland Golf media liaison officer Michael Macdonald describing the feat as amazing, and Northern Wairoa Club spokesman Robert Nathan saying it was something special.

Mr Sills, who had another hole in one at the course "about 10 or 12 years ago" said it was the stuff of fairy tales to get two in one round, but he wasn't getting too carried away with the feat, and despite beating overwhelming odds of about 67 million to one to score two holes in one on the same round he didn't go straight out and buy a Lotto ticket.

"It's just a fluke really. You can't play for a hole in one, although I suppose there is a modicum of skill involved," he said yesterday..

"It seemed like a bit of a fairy tale to be honest. It was in the realms of fantasy to get two in one round, although I'm pretty laid back about these sort of things.

"Others are a bit more excited than me, but we [he and his playing partner] actually lost the beer and I had a terrible round, [apart from the two aces obviously]. The rest of the round didn't live up to those two [shots], but that's golf."

Mr Sills, a life member at the club, where he has been a member since 15, got his first ace on Saturday on the course's par three, 165 metre fifth hole, and his second at the par three, 113 metre 9th about an hour later.

"I didn't really believe I'd got the first. When the other [three in the group, Denys Suckling, Peter Fowlie and Andy Blattherwick] said they thought it had gone in the hole [straight from the tee] I wasn't sure, but when I looked there it was [in the hole]. A hole in one isn't something you do every day," he said.

"Then [on the ninth] one of the others said "what odds of another ace" and one of the others said "100-1". But I didn't take him up on it.

"So I hit it [from the tee] and it was a good shot. We could see the green and the others said 'it's gone in' but I didn't believe it.

"It's pretty rare to get one, let alone two, and I thought it must be hiding behind the pin.

"There was another group [of golfers] near the green and then when they started jumping up and down I believed it."

Mr Macdonald, who was at the course when Mr Sills achieved the feat, said he was not aware of another case of two holes in one in the same round in Northland.

"It's pretty special. Every golfer lives to get a hole in one, so to get two is pretty amazing," Mr Macdonald said.

"It couldn't happen to a nicer guy. The course only has three par threes [most are four] so he only had three chances to get an ace and he hit two. That's amazing."

Mr Nathan said the club was abuzz with Mr Sills' feat.

"He's an amazing golfer and great guy."