There is no such thing as batting for the cycle in golf, but Amelia Garvey got as close as possible during her round Thursday on the NXXT Women’s Pro Tour. The Kiwi had scores of 1 through 6 on her card, including an albatross, ace, eagle, birdie, par, and bogey in recording a six-under 66 at Royal St. Cloud in Florida.
“I’m regretting not tracking a 7 in there now,” Garvey joked.
The incredible day came after Garvey started the Royal St. Cloud Women’s Championship with a pair of challenging rounds that put her at seven over par. So she swapped her putter out before the start of the final 18. Fortunately for her, she didn’t need it much.
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Garvey jumped to a quick start with an eagle on the first, but little did she know that would be far from the day’s biggest highlight. The two-year Epson Tour player aced the 153-yard par-3 sixth hole with a 7-iron. She may have been helped by a good luck charm in group mate Erikah Neger, who had witnessed another hole-in-one earlier in the event.
“I said [to Neger], I think you need to kind of like come out on tour with me this year and just follow me around,” Garvey explained.
The 23-year-old had flashbacks to the only other time she had an ace in a tournament, back when she was a junior and triple bogeyed the following hole. Now with her first hole in one as a professional, she remained composed, going one over on her next six holes before the par-5 13th.
Garvey had 161 yards into the green, and with a bunker blocking her view, she hit a pure 8-iron. Since Garvey could not see the ball roll into the cup.
“The whole way walking up to the green, we’re all just laughing,” Garvey said. “Because I was like, ‘there is no way this one has gone in.’”
The former USC Trojan went one under over the last four holes to shoot 66, moving up 14 spots to finish in a tie for seventh place.
While pleased to record her first albatross, four bogeys left Garvey feeling disappointed.
“Kind of a little bit annoying that this was a mini-tour event,” Garvey said. The total purse of the event was $20,000. “It didn’t make me that much money.”
Not all her takeaways from the self-described “crazy” day were negative. Garvey now carries momentum before starting her Epson Tour season at the Florida Natural’s Charity Classic on March 8. She finished 36th on the Epson money list last year.
This article was originally published on golfdigest.com
