Barrett Chevrolet of Berlin, MD recently presented the keys for a brand new 2012 45th Anniversary Edition Camaro SS to Craig Lynch of Ocean City, MD. After riding down Main Street in Berlin in the red and black vehicle during the Berlin Bathtub Races with John Barrett, Lynch rode into the sunset with his children buckled into the backseat of the car.
Barrett Chevrolet, an established Chevy dealer in the Delmarva area, provided hole-in-one prizes on four different par-3 holes for the Ocean City Golf Club’s Member-Guest Golf Tournament held the weekend of July 6th and 7th, 2012. Each hole-in-one on the designated car holes, wins a new car. Lynch was the only golfer during the 2-day tournament to get a hole-in-one.
Lynch, an employee of D3Corp in West Ocean City, is a member of the Ocean City Golf Club. He has been a member of the club for over 10 years. The golf club’s Seaside Course, the course at which his hole-in-one took place, is one of Lynch’s home courses. Lynch has spent the past decade playing golf at the Ocean City Golf Club.
As a member, Lynch invited his cousin, Todd Wright, to play in the Member-Guest Tournament with him. 2012 marked Lynch’s 11th year participating in the Member-Guest Tournament. Neither Lynch nor Wright ever suspected they would walk away, or drive away, with a prize after playing a game of golf that weekend.
Wright, along with the two other players in the foursome and the official spotter, witnessed the rare occurrence on Saturday, July 7th. Lynch hit a seven iron to achieve a hole-in-one.
Lynch recalls the official spotter yelling, “Oh my gosh! I’ve never seen a hole-in-one before!”
He then looked at the spotter and saw a shocked expression on her face – one of disbelief. Lynch jumped into a cart and rode up to the hole with the spotter to verify that it was indeed, a hole-in-one. The spotter, Wright, and Lynch were all speechless when they looked into the hole and saw Lynch’s single golf ball.
There are a total of 36 holes between the Seaside course and the Newport Bay Course; eight par-3’s between the two courses, four par-3’s with cars. The hole in which Lynch had scored a hole-in-one one was one sponsored by Irie Radio 98.1. The hole also marked the first car to ever be given away during the Ocean City Golf Club’s Member-Guest Tournament.
Lynch and Wright played the Newport Bay course during the first day of the tournament and the Seaside course the following day. The Seaside Course, Lynch’s lucky course on 7/7, was established in 1959 and offers players a challenging classic course layout. The tree lined fairways and tightly guarded greens mark Seaside as a favorite among golfers in the Mid-Atlantic region.
Lynch’s handicap has dragged a little over the past few years (from a 7 handicap to a current handicap of 10), and he now refers to himself as an ‘alright’ golfer. Many believe that achieving a hole-in-one on any course makes an individual more than an ‘alright’ golfer. Even more believe that winning a shiny, brand new car by scoring the only hole-in-one during a two-day tournament might make you a ‘really good’ golfer.
“People rarely make a hole-in-one. To make that shot on that day, on that hole, for that prize, at that yardage is quite an accomplishment and a spectacular achievement,” said Buddy Sass, a PGA professional at the Ocean City Golf Club.
For now, Lynch plans to drive his 2003 Chevy Tahoe as a main vehicle and only drive his new 2012 Camaro on special occasions.
Congratulations to Lynch on his big win.
Photos in gallery below by Natalee DeHart, as seen on GoodCleanFunLife. Featured photo of golf ball in hole was taken by Lynch on his cell phone.
