Dale Whitnell makes two holes-in-one in same round at South African Open

By: The Associated Press Posted: 9:19 AM CST Friday, Feb. 28, 2025 Last Modified: 10:48 AM CST Friday, Feb. 28, 2025

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DURBAN, South Africa (AP) — Dale Whitnell made two holes-in-one in the same round at the South African Open on Friday, having entered the day worrying about just making the cut at the European tour event.

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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 28/02/2025 (568 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The 36-year-old Englishman aced the par-3 second and 12th holes at the Durban Country Club in a wild 9-under 63 second round that included an eagle, seven birdies, two bogeys and one double bogey.

“I was struggling to make the cut so I knew I needed to go out and play well and got off to a hot start as they would say,” said Whitnell, ranked No. 545.

FILE - Britain's Dale Whitnell holds the trophy after winning the PGA European Tour, Scandinavian Mixed, at Ullna golf course outside Stockholm, Sweden, Sunday June 11, 2023, file. (Anders Wiklund/TT via AP, file)

“Birdied the first and then hit a flush 7-iron on the second and didn’t realize it went in until down the bottom they sort of cheered. That was lovely.”

Whitnell then eagled the par-5 third and would have to wait a whopping nine holes for his second ace.

“I’ve never had one in tournament play. To have two in one day is pretty special,” he said, a day after shooting a level-par 72 in the opening round.

Brian Harman also made two aces in the same round at the 2015 Barclays on the PGA Tour at Plainfield Country Club, acing the third and 14th holes in the final round. Yusaku Miyazato of Japan, playing on a sponsor exemption at the 2006 Reno-Tahoe Open on the PGA Tour, made a hole-in-one on the seventh and 12th holes in the second round.

According to the U.S.-based National Hole-in-One Registry, the odds of making a hole-in-one twice in the same round are 67 million to 1.