The final hole of Brett Danforth’s golf season couldn’t have gone any more perfectly.
Danforth and former University of Maine hockey player Mario Thyer of Bangor each recorded a hole-in-one on Sunday on the 144-yard fourth hole at Penobscot Valley Country Club in Orono.
The aces came within a two-hour span.
Thyer was playing as a guest at Penobscot Valley Country Club with two friends, and Danforth’s ace came during the club’s Octoberfest scramble.
It wasn’t an ideal day for golf, with blustery winds and temperatures in the 50s.
“Any day of golf is a good day,” said Danforth, whose hole-in-one was his first in 21 years playing the game. “It was good being out there with some friends.”
Penobscot Valley Country Club’s fourth hole features a slightly elevated green that is guarded by a bunker on the left, and a severe slope from right to left, according to Penobscot Valley Country Club club pro Jason Harris.
“As far as we know, it’s the first time there’s ever been two holes-in-one on the same day on the same hole,” Harris said.
Danforth, whose parents own Danforth’s Down Home Supermarket in Hermon, was playing with longtime friends Scott Garland, Troy Garland and Dale Duplisea.
“I’m done for the year,” quipped Danforth. “We all got a pretty good kick out of it.”
Harris said both Danforth and Thyer recorded their aces from the blue tees.
The fourth was the 18th hole of the day played by Danforth’s group, which finished second in the tourney.
Danforth, who used a 9-iron, said he played his shot to the right side of the green and let the slope take it down and into the cup.
“If you’re left, you’re in the bunker,” Danforth said. “It landed in the right spot and just dropped in the hole.”
Danforth, who plays at courses around Greater Bangor, typically uses a 52-degree wedge on the midrange par 3, but headwinds on the hole forced him to go up two clubs.
“It turned out to be the right selection,” he said.
Thyer, a Montreal native who is a financial adviser, used a 7-iron to record his ace, which was witnessed by Kevin Barry and Charlie Rawcliffe. It was the first hole-in-one for Thyer, who played hockey at UMaine in the mid- to late-1980s.
Like Danforth, Thyer also adapted well to the wind by going up a few clubs more than he usually would on that hole.
“It was chilly, the wind was blowing really hard,” Thyer said. “You’re hoping to hit a good shot, and you watch it go, and somebody says, ‘Well, this might go in.’”
Thyer started playing golf 30 years ago. He said he aimed his shot toward the right of the green.
“We were able to see it really well from the tee box,” said Thyer, who tries to play once per week.
“This was my first round in about three weeks,” he said.
Follow Ryan McLaughlin on Twitter at @rmclaughlin23.
