You’re Never Too Young For That Hole-In-One

To those flailing wretches who have golfed for decades without carding a hole-in-one, here’s some advice: Don’t read this item.

You might be a little dismayed to hear of the achievement of 10-year-old Gil Rapp Jr.

Gil celebrated July 4th by golfing with his father at Sun Dance.

On the 121-yard, par-3 No. 13, the young Rapp scored an ace with his driver.

He’s played, oh, maybe six or seven times in his life.

Easy game, huh, Gil?

“Kinda,” he said.

The odds are roughly 1-in-300,000 of hitting a hole-in-one. Even Fred Couples had never hit one until last year.

When approaching the 13th tee, the young Rapp told his father that he was going to aim for the bunker because “I like to hit it out of there.”

“I told him, ‘don’t do that, you can reach the green and maybe get a hole-in-one’,” Gil Sr. said. “He said ‘no way’.”

Way.

Gil Jr. hit the ball some 80 yards in the air and saw it trickle onto the green and then disappear.

“I was jumping and saying so much junk I don’t know what it was I said,” Gil Jr. said. “This is just my rookie year, you know.”

He finished the round with a career-best score of 128.

“I made my dad carry my bag the rest of the way,” Gil Jr. said.

Did he have to buy beers for everybody in the clubhouse?

“No, but he got a pop before we went home,” Gil Sr. said.

City championship

Years ago, the Spokane City Amateur Championship was one of the most hotly contested tournaments around.

After more than 20 years of dormancy, the tournament was revived two years ago with Jared Jeffries and Craig Looper each claiming a title.

The unique 54-hole tournament begins next week with play being conducted Friday at Indian Canyon, Saturday at Downriver and Sunday at The Creek at Qualchan.

Ninety golfers competed two years ago; last year’s event drew 150, and this year the number of entrants will be limited to 200.

Entry forms are available at area courses and the tournament is open to all golfers with USGA handicaps not just Spokane golfers. Net competition in four flights will also accompany the championship battle.

“We’re trying to find out who the best amateur players around here are,” said tournament organizer Gary Blair. “Everybody seems to like the format. Each of the courses is different and you start looking ahead to the last day on the back-nine and Qualchan and that could be very interesting seeing what they’ll do on 16, 17 and 18.”

Last year, Looper defeated Bob Christiansen in a playoff in the final round at Downriver.

Blair sees the tournament, in its newest incarnation, continuing to grow.

“We look at the possibilities ahead and think that we might put in a senior division, too, to find a city senior champ,” Blair said.

Entry fee is $50 plus green fees.

On the tube

If you couldn’t make it out to The Coeur d’Alene Resort for the Bank of America Quarterback Classic on June 30, the event will be televised on Prime Sports July 29.

If you think you can win a bar bet on it with a sucker who hasn’t been watching closely, put your money on John Elway to win it.

, DataTimes