When Will Hayden was 4 years old, his father Tim began to show him everything he knew about golf. Fast-forward, when Tim takes Will on a golf excursion to Doral, Florida, after Will didn’t make the varsity golf team. Despite an allergic reaction to walnuts and a trip to the hospital, events would take a curious turn for the better.
Will was able to play golf the next day and on the eighth hole (called the Red Tiger) using his eight iron, the 17-year-old hit a hole in one.
But he didn’t see the ball go in. “We looked everywhere for the ball on the course … then found it in the hole,” says Tim.
Then, just 24 hours later on April Fool’s Day, and again with an eight iron, but this time on the 15th hole of the Blue Monster, lightning struck twice. Only this time, Will did see his ball go in. He’d already received acknowledgment from the clubhouse the day before, so saying it happened again, and on April 1, would seem unbelievable. Will and his father asked their caddy to corroborate the story.
Will went on to become captain of the 2016 varsity golf team at Edina High School and is greeted regularly by loved ones with “Any hole-in-ones today?” He plans to attend St. Lawrence University this fall. We wonder if he’ll play on the golf team.
