Kurt Eleam on the 9th hole green at Eagle’s Nest
Howie Tiger
On April 22 Kurt Eleam made a double-eagle (a score of 2) on the par-5 9th hole at Eagle’s Nest. He did it while playing with the Wild Bunch Golf Group.
Kurt and his playing partners, Rich Jesko, Bill Gainer, and Brad Johnston had started their round on the back nine. So, the 9th hole was their last hole of the day. The hole was playing 470 yards from the blue tees. Kurt hit a good drive about 15 yards past the left-side fairway bunker. His drive left him 187 yards to a front center pin. Kurt gave very little thought about going for the green as he had just double-bogeyed #6, double-bogeyed #7, and double-bogeyed #8. He said to himself, “What have I got to lose?” So, he hit a solid 6-iron with a straight high trajectory. His ball landed just short of the green, rolled over a slight downslope and disappeared from sight. As the 9th green slopes down from the front, he could not see the bottom of the flagstick.
Kurt arrived at the green about the same time as Rich Jesko. Kurt did not see his ball on the green. He said to Rich, “I think it went in!” Kurt checked the hole and there it was. Rich said to Kurt at that moment with a smile, “You’re probably the best player ever!” Kurt waited to retrieve his ball until both Bill and Brad arrived. High fives commenced. This was his first ever double-eagle.
A double-eagle is also known as an “albatross” as it is so rare. It has been said that the odds of making one are 6 million to one. One study estimated that 40,000 holes-in-one are made annually, but only 200 double-eagles.
Kurt has been playing golf for 55 years. He has had one hole-in-one and that was in 2015 at Hiddenbrooke Golf Club in Vallejo, Calif.
Kurt spent his formative years in Portland, Ore. After graduation from the University of South Carolina, his 33-year career with the U.S. government started with measuring gravity as a geophysicist for the Naval Oceanographic Office (many months at sea) all the way to cybersecurity. He traveled and lived throughout the world (Europe and Hawaii). Besides golf, his hobby is woodturning/lathe work. He and his wife of 34 years, Suzanne, moved to PebbleCreek in 2021.
Congratulations on a super shot that few golfers have ever made!